All We Want Is Bad Boys
by Umbrella.Confederation
Summary: After a fallout with Ron, 22 year old Hermione needs change. After moving in with Mr.X, aka Draco Malfoy, the two become part of a bizarre bet between Harry, Ginny, and Blaise. Upset with the interference, Hermione and Draco form an unlikely "love" farce
1. Chapter 1: Rudiments of Life

_**Ekaterina's Disclaimer:**__ If I owned Harry Potter, would I be writing fanfics? Nope, don't think so..._

_**Mimiona's crazy cool disclaimer: **__Well, I don't have British accent. Enough said. _

_**Ekaterina's Note:**__ Heya all, this is our second group fanfiction! Yaaaay! After Picnic Story, we decided to give Dramione a try~ our first Dramione so be nice, mk? Yeah, so hopefully we can actually have a more in dept story here. Hmmm, what else? Well, reviewers can get virtual cakes, hugs, and... mushrooms. I hate mushroom...Yep. So,thanks for reading! Much love..._

_PS. My inspiration while writing this was Libba Bray, an author that I hold in very high regard._

_**Mimiona's Note:**__ I'm gonna make this short. We've started a new fanfiction, Dramione. Review! (Believe me, you will regret if you don't. Yes, to answer that unspoken question, that IS a threat!)_

_**Amber's Note and Disclaimer:**__ Hellos peoples. Whether you like it or not, it's Amber again. We decided to make a new fanfic, even though the first story we wrote still isnt done yet, and we started that one before Picnic Story...T.T But, I hope you continue supporting us (and a little sponsoring wouldn't hurt either, you know) whether you like mushrooms or not, which you should, because they are the world's best creation other than eggs and bread. Did I make you hungry? Good. And for all those who think that we're horrible people for writing a story using J.K Rowling's characters without permission, guess what? You're right. but we'll make it up to you with chocolate and roses. ...Just kidding. As much as I'd like to wave around a wand and own a pure white owl, I highly doubt it's mine to keep. _

_**Blossom's Note:**__ Hello, Readers! This is our second group fanfiction! Please read and review! Thanks so much!_

ChApTeR 1: RuDiMeNt'S oF LiFe

So. Happy endings. Save the world, get the guy you love (or at least, you're pretty damn sure you do) and live in a world of rainbows, unicorns, and candies. Simple, right? Haha, of course it is! But wait, there's a catch. Yeah, sorry love, that's not life, that's what you dream of when you beat the crazy guy who wants to take over the world and are so relieved that you couldn't care less if you ended up a lunatic pushing trolly's and glaring at strangers, wondering if they may be on to you having escaped the loony house.

That was how Hermione had felt after the demise of Voldemort, so glad that she couldn't care less if she loved Ron or not, so glad that it didn't matter where she would live, nothing mattered but life. Life and death, that is, as many of her closest friends had... passed on... during the decisive battle.

She had found her parents, who were so well situated in Australia that they decided to remain there after she had taken the spell off. She decided to move in with the Weasleys. Harry, of course, had done the same for about two years before he went to Hogwarts as their Defense Against the Dark Arts professor. Hermione and Harry, when he had been there, were more than welcome at the Burrow; after all, they were second family and both were probably going to be formally part of the family in some time.

Well, five years past and nothing was happening at ALL. Ron, always the fickle lover, had grown distant and acted as if they had nothing going between them at all. So she had spent two years in confusion as to what was happening, and three years pretending that everything was her perfect world: a great job as chief PR (public relations) of the Chudley Cannons (Ron's new team, he was their keeper), being best friend to and fellow saviour of the world, and possibly have something with the red head of the trio. No. Her life was quite contrary to popular belief.

So when 5 years later, on a foggy Friday morning, when she sat at her desk with an epiphany of life, it was rather startling. Her life was definitely not how it should have been. At least, in fairytale speak. That morning, when she had walked into her office (located in the mainstream Quidditch district~ that's where all the major team companies were) only to find Ronald Weasley, the only love interest of her life, snogging the life out of some girl-his new stylist or something. So concentrated in it that he didn't even notice when she walked in. Yeah, you read that right. Just snogging another girl, right in front of his girlfriend. Nice, no? Right. So Ron wanted to pretend that they never had what does anything at all, and that it should have been blaringly obvious.

Hermione groaned as she rested her head on her desk, being a major leading PR CEO was simple enough: get the work done, make the team and other people happy, but working out what was happening with her love life? Psh, she might as well have been told to find out what Voldemort's favorite stuffed animal was. Contrary to what many people of Hogwarts thought she would become (a boorish, dull bookworm with no life), Hermione was actually quite a lovely lady and had been the attention of many a suitor. She had turned them all down on account of her 'childhood sweetheart.'

And now what? Seriously speaking, as successful as she was, it would be extremely easy to get a new job. The war hero status helped out too. She nodded in satisfaction, getting a newer and better job for a Quidditch team that could win more than three games a year would be a good first step, she was no longer tied down by the illusions of a 'romantic childhood love that happened to consist of nothing and loads of awkward silences.'

Maybe moving out of the Weasleys dwelling would be good too. Seeing Ron's face constantly might raise her blood pressure too much which would not be good. Plus, it was only natural-sure, it was friendship, but that hadn't been everything when she moved into the Burrow. And now that was over-or maybe it had been for these past years-so out she would go.

Five minutes later she was all packed, all her stuff was in two giant boxes, neatly packed with a flick of her wand. Hermione was feeling quite satisfied as shew walked down the hall, everyone who passed her had a mien of shock and disappointment that the only person keeping their team from being the most pathetic one in the history of Quidditch was leaving.

"Hermione! Wait, what's going on? You.. Boxes? Huh? Did you get promoted?" she could Ron from the other end of the hall.

"Ron, I'm CEO, I can't really be promoted, you know..." Hermione sighed and turned around.

Ron smiled broadly and scratched his head. "Oh, yeah, huh. Then what? Are you moving offices?"

"No Ronald, I'm simply dumping the Cannons. I'm sorry, but I've really wanted to say this for ages. You guys are not... the best. You guys are the sodding worst team EVER," somehow she managed all of this with a dry smile, but it hurt inside to say it. She didn't mean to offend them really, they already knew this and many had already questioned her reasons for sticking to the team. Perhaps it had been her feelings toward Ron, she wasn't sure herself but honesty was definitely refreshing.

Ron looked downcast, "Oh... I guess you do deserve to go on to someplace better." He gave a wry smile. "I guess we all knew that this was going to happen."

Hermione nodded, thinking to herself that it never would have if he hadn't caused it. "Yeah, I'm sorry... but I have to go higher in this world, climb this ladder of society."

"Alright, well... I'm going out for dinner so I guess I'll see you at home tomorrow!" whistling cheerfully (far too cheerful for someone who just lost the only good thing about his team) Ron looked dreamily into the distance.

Dinner? Dinner with the stylist, probably. It felt bitter; it hurt.

"Hermione? Are you okay?" Ron asked, peering into her face.

"Huh?" Hermione hadn't realized she was frowning darkly. "Yeah," she answered firmly. "I'm fine." Without even a smile, she walked away, leaving a bewildered Ron alone in the hall.  
>The moment she got back to the Burrow, she grabbed a bottle of firewhisky and walked up to her room to forget the day's events. It was going to be a long couple of months, bringing down Ron was her new life motivation.<p> 


	2. Chapter 2: That Impossible Bet

ChApTeR 2: ThAt ImPoSsIbLe BeT

_Amber's Disclaimer: We do not own any of J.K Rowling's characters and neither are we con artists that pretend to while stealing your money. I wish, but no. _

_Ekaterina's Note: Hullo! We actually have a pretty good idea of where we want this story to go! (for once) now we just have to figure out how to put it down on paper without confusing you :3 haha...sigh... school starts on Wednesday (tomorrow! :o) :l I thought summer would never end. I'll be stuck carrying my school bad and my tennis bag everywhere... bleah whatever xD Happy schooling everyone!_

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><p>Two weeks after quitting and Hermione was still deciding which job offer to pick up on, she had had a barrage of possibilities once people had found out that THE Hermione Granger was up for the takes. But at the moment, her current focus was moving out of the Burrow, one more look at Ron's late night entries with mussed up hair would lead to murder.<p>

Of course, the rest of the family suspected nothing, Ginny and Harry were at Hogwarts~ Harry as defense against the dark arts teacher and Ginny as the Quiddtich coach. Percy was living elsewhere, but had left politics for Flourish and Blott's in Diagon Alley~ he lived near George, Angelina, and their toddler daughter Marie. Bill and Fleur were still at Shell cottage, raising their lovely daughter Victoire, and Charlie... well, no one really knew much about Charlie. That left just her, Ron, and his parents at the Burrow.

Where to go. Where to go? Hermione skimmed through the Daily Prophet for any rooms for rent. Thanks to the not-so-good Quidditch team, she didn't have all that much money to be able to buy a house or rent a condo...Hermione sighed. No where to go, it seemed.

_Nice, comfortable room near Diagon Alley. Males welcome._

No, that didn't work. As far as she knew, she was female.

_Beautiful neighborhood, small but cozy room. Wonderful scenery of Ireland!_

IRELAND? Well, she _could _relocate there, but still...rather stay in England.

_My basement, it's small, cold, cramped, but food is complimentary~ heating spells generally work too unless it's too weak a spell. But it's cheap!_

This person was insane, who would rent a basement with such bad standards! She shook the papers back into place and kept reading with mild disgust.

_I need a roommate! One with benefits! You can stay for free! _

She choked on her water at this one and promptly turned the page, blushing mildly, looked through the page dejectedly, and sighed.

Ugghhh, there was nothing! Absolutely nothing! Hermione sighed and flung the paper down, throwing herself on her bed.

* * *

><p>"Hey, Draco!" Blaise smiled and greeted his friend.<p>

"Blaise, hey, mate!" Draco answered, sitting down next to him. They were at a bar, and Blaise had already ordered the firewhiskey.

"Yup," Blaise took a gulp of his drink, "How you been?"

"Eh, the usual. Mum and Dad kicked me out saying that I should live my life. You know, I think they might have gone on some sort of happy high streak. You?" Draco took a sip.

"Good, all's well so far. Oh, I did tell you that I was dating Mirian Rawood?" He chuckled. "I broke up with her today. Broke her darling little heart, I'll say."

Draco looked up with minimal interest. "Oh, really?"

"Yeah, but that's just life, you know?" Blaise took another long drink of the firewhiskey. "How about you Draco? Single all along?"

Draco nodded.

Blaise laughed heartily. "Oh, come on, you've gotta get a life! There are some really pretty girls out there, you know? I can hook you up. You interested?"

"No, it's fine. I'm not into girls at the moment."

"Uh-huh. So does that mean you swing the other way?" he asked, his grin letting Draco know that he was teasing.

Draco ignored him and took a sip of his drink.

" 'At the moment' apparently means for five years," Blaise sighed. "Or is it that you're interested in someone in particular?" He raised his eyebrows.

"Because I see _so _many girls," Draco said sarcastically. "I mean, I see Pansy (who's married to Nott), I see Astoria, who dumped me for some half-assed boyfriend, I see you... but I don't know your intentions with me...Yeah, I've got lots of choices!"

Blaise chuckled. "You're no fun."

"Oh, and as if you don't have anyone in mind... you've been wishing for a certain blond Ravenclaw to notice you for years now," ," Draco responded dryly. "Was it...Loony, right? You know ... If you stopped picking up every girl you saw, you might just have a chance."

Blaise frowned slightly and downed some more alcohol.

Draco allowed a small smile, he could party hard if he wanted, but right now he was trying to at least figure out what the hell his parents were on when then made him head of all their businesses.

"Okay, okay, geez. It's just that you haven't met anyone since that bloody war at Hogwarts..." He gulped down his third bottle of firewhiskey. "Oh, Hogwarts, that place... so many memories..." He seemed a little drunk; his cheeks pink and his words slurred slightly.

Draco nodded absentmindedly.

"Hogwarts... We had good times there... Rule breaking, thinking we were the bad ass mother fu-"

"I remember," Draco cut him off, smiling slightly.

"Yeah...Potter and his crew always managed to grab the good stuff, huh... Like Granger... If she wasn't Weasley's, I would've grabbed her for myself, ya know. But, if my sources are correct, he's not so into her anymore. She dumped his team too..."

Draco made an impolite soft snort and continued examining his drink. He would never admit it but he had a grudging respect for the girl. But because she as the only person he had respect for, he disliked her for it. It was a very Malfoy-esque way of showing respect.

Blaise looked at Draco in irritation. "Draco Sodding Malfoy, are you even listening to me?"

Draco sighed and motioned for Blaise to continue.

"Hey, all this talk of Granger reminded me...We made a bet a long time ago, remember? A bet that you wouldn't be able to get Granger."

"Bet?"

"Yeah, in...sixth year, was it?" He chuckled. "You know...the impossible bet that we dropped..."

_~Flashback~_

"_You? Able to get any girl you want?" Blaise asked, his eyebrow raised. _

_Draco nodded smugly. "I bet- Hell, I know I can," he said. "You know, Blaise, there is not a girl in Slytherin that I haven't dated...and I broke each and every one of their oh-so-tender hearts. "Almost all in Hupplepuff and Ravenclaw too!"_

_Blaise laughed. "But you can't have Hermione Granger."_

_Draco was silent. "Well, she's... well protected, if you know what I mean... She won't fall in love and if she does, it's with ginger head." _

_Blaise chugged his butterbeer before saying, "You know that she would never go out with you, no matter how charming you are, mate."_

"_Yes, well, I just explained why to you."_

"_I bet you anything that you can't get her!" Blaise said triumphantly._

"_Blaise, mate, the point of a bet is that there are two opposing parties, not two in agreement. I can't get her 'cause she's a dense princess with no choice in guys!" Draco was exasperated by now. _

"_Fine fine," Blaise pouted an went back to his drink. _

_~End Flashback~_

Draco chuckled, "Blaise, dear, we never even _made_ that bet. It was just a childish thing. I thought we were over that six years ago..."

"NOOOOO DRACO LOVE, I ALWAYS REMEMBERED!" Blaise wailed, throwing himself at Draco. he seemed to have grown even more drunk in the time Draco was remembering.

"Er Blaise, Blaise? Mate, gerrof me-" he broke into a jumble of curse words, trying to pry a very drunk Blaise off of himself.

"Draco, I have soooomefing fur yoooou!" Blaise slurred.

"Not an engagement ring, is it?" the blonde asked suspiciously.

"NOOOOOOO silly!" he giggled and whacked Draco's back. "Noooooo. A bet!"

"Blaise, you blithering idiot, I didn't come out here for you to harass me then try to hook me up with Granger! Now get-"

"300 galleons!"

"Mate, I don't need the money."

"500!"

Draco hesitated, his business mind starting to roll, "So, if I charm Granger, I win?" he mused thoughtfully.

There was no response from Blaise.

"Well, make it a new (and good) car. If that's it, then sure."

"But, do you swear on your honor and reputation to try to get Hermione to fall in love with you, no matter what?" Blaise said, grinning broadly.

"Yes, well, I suppose...a new car... Alright, I swear," Draco mused.

"Brilliant, you can't back out now! By the end of the month, Ginny and Harry'll owe me a new car! I never told you I bet with _you-_-and exactly _what_ I bet. I bet with Ginny and Harry that you will charm Hermione. And you just swore to charm her. Try to fall in love too, you need it," cackling (and hiccuping at the same time), Blaise apparated away.

Draco froze in surprise, "Wait, you son of a- YOU BET ON MY LOVE LIFE WITH POTTER?"

* * *

><p><em>Dear Harry, <em>

_It's so romantic that we write letters to each other even though we're to be married soon. I can't wait, it's so bloody exciting! Actually, I'm rather surprised that Minerva allowed us to maintain a relationship within grounds... _

_Anyway, all the kids are having fun flying around (reminds me of our childhood) so I might as well have fun, too and write to you, you know? Did the owl that suddenly swooped into your classroom scare you?I hope you're pleased by the letter, though. _

_I actually have no idea as to what to talk about, we're together most of the time anyways. OH! The bet! I was rather surprised when Blaise approached us. I mean, I think that it's blaringly obvious that Draco will never charm Hermione. I mean, she's still so starstruck with my sodding idiot of a brother. So I suppose that we wouldn't owe Blaise 500 galleons or whatever we bet, for that; he will owe us, though. It's just not possible for Hermione to like Draco; I think it's just so natural for them to hate each other. I do wonder where he gets such confidence from, though. He must be rather desperate for money to make such a ridiculous bet. _

_I hope your teaching is going well...make sure to send a reply, 'k? _

_Much love, Ginny_

_PS. Dinner down at the pitch tonight?_

* * *

><p><em>Dearest Ginny,<em>

_Well, I don't know, but isn't writing letters during class a bit... never mind...As for the owl that came flying in to the class...well long story short, some of the kids started teasing; it's not so natural for such a thing to happen... You won't believe how embarrassing such a thing would be. And so me, replying to you, is causing a lot of whispers throughout the class...especially amongst the girls. _

_Anyways, I'm very happy too, and quite relieved that Ron has not murdered me yet for proposing to you. Oh, well, I think that Minerva had a pretty good idea that we would be together no matter what, so... Actually, I was pretty surprised about the bet as well, Blaise must have a lot of faith in Draco, although I don't know where he gets it. We are such bad friends, betting on our friend's love life. _

_Ah, well, Hermione is a clever witch and she won't fall for someone as rude, snobby, and idiotic as Malfoy the ever bouncing ferret. I dunno, Ron was never a very stable person, love-wise, I agree that Hermione should stop being so partial to your brother, he's going to break her heart again one of these days and we won't be there to help. _

_But if Draco does manage to charm Hermione, we _will _owe Blaise 500 galleons (was that what we bet? Blaise has a reputation for betting things other than money), and if Hermione does not end up falling in love with Draco, we'll gain 500._

_ It's really more likely that Draco and Hermione would end up ripping each other's' guts out with curses, so...I think we'll be safe. I still feel awful about not telling Hermione, though...But then that wouldn't be so fair... _

_Love, Harry_

_PS. Candle light picnic? I'll grab some stuff from the kitchens. _

* * *

><p><em>AN: Okay, This is important: Basically, Blaise made a bet with Ginny and Harry that Draco could make Hermione fall in love with him. He makes Draco swear to try to get Hermione to fall for him by pretending to bet with Draco. Then specifies that the bet was made not with Draco, but with Harry and Ginny. Good? _


	3. Chapter 3: Logic, not a Stalker

_**Mimiona's Disclaimer: "**__You may say I'm a dreamer, but I'm not the only one. I hope someday, you will join us!" Us being the poor fanfiction writers out there, dreaming that one day, just ONE DAY, we could own the wonderful characters and setting which belong to Ms. Rowling. Oh, how I wish. _

_**Ekaterina's Disclaimer:**__ Did you know that they have a special edition JK Rowling Barbie doll? Yeah... they don't have a Barbie for me yet :( Maybe someday..._

_**Mimiona's Note: **__OKAY, EVERYBODY! WE HAVE HAD OUR FIRST REVIEWER (who hates mushrooms =.= ought to be ashamed xP) So, APPLAUSE to our lovely DUTCHYGIRL! 3 Well, there's no higher honor from us than to be bestowed upon with mushrooms, but since you don't like them, wanna cookie? And to everyone else, REVIEW, LOST SOULS! Let the light of the review button guide you to happiness and prosperity!_

_**Ekaterina's Note:**__ Okay! Hello and welcome to another chapter of AWWIBB, which somehow cannot be found on the search bar. Which is kinda sorta depressing :l Yeah... First day of school and they already messed up my schedule -_- this happens to me every year D: Maybe it's because I always choose the more unique electives/sports... or maybe they just don't like me... Bleah, anyhow, 'nuff bout me, ReViEw darlings! THANK YOU TO DUTCHYGIRL AND ALL WHO FAVORITED OR STORY ALERTED. You guys make me want to write more._

_**Blossom's Note:**__ Hello, readers! A round of applause to our first (and only) reviewer...Dutchygirl! Let's hope we get some more though! All critique and/or comments are greatly appreciated! _

_Thank you so much everyone!_

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><p><strong>ChApTeR 3: LoGiC, nOt A sTaLkEr<strong>

Draco sighed. He was in the Malfoy Manor study, wondering how he was to go about his task of getting the hate of his life. The room was dark, but beautifully furnished thanks to his mother; the thick curtains covered all but one window, allowing in only minimal sunlight.

Muttering a chain of curse words, Draco got up from his desk and started pacing the room. Why, why, why! Why in the name of Merlin had he sworn to that Blaise?

"_But, do you swear on your honor and reputation to try to get Hermione to fall in love with you, no matter what?" Blaise said, grinning broadly._

"_Yes, well, I suppose...a new car... Alright, I swear." _

That idiot Blaise was going to drive him insane one day, making a false bet that he had sworn on... Groaning softly, he sat down again. How had he gotten himself in this mess? Charming the girl who he had grudging respect for?

"Its fine, I'll quit... Malfoy repute is crap anyways," he declared to himself. Just then, there was a loud _crack! _and Blaise appeared.

"What did I just hear you say?" he asked, grinning.

"Sh-, don't do that-" Draco exclaimed in surprise as he stumbled back. "Why are _you_ here?"

Blaise smirked and replied, "To check on how lover boy plans to charm the lovely Hermione Granger."

"Get. Out."

"Oh, come on, mate! It's not that bad! All you have to do is get Granger to fall for you, take her out on a few dates, let me win the bet, and then you guys can work it out so no one loses! Think of that! You can totally be in charge of everything... It's a win-win situation! Well, for you and me, at least..." Blaise said, shrugging.

"It's amazing how you can call me your friend," Draco said dryly. "Seriously, I should have expected this out a fellow Slytherin, drunk or not. Sadly, you're so thick that I underestimated."

Blaise laughed. "Well, fellow Slytherin or friend, money is money. And that nice car I'm getting... that's definitely something worth money."

Draco scowled.

"Anyway, you swore, on your honor and reputation, that you would try to charm Hermione. Right?"

Draco didn't answer but scowled.

"Right?"

"Oh, fine, yeah. But I was tricked!"

"Unless your reputation really doesn't play much of a role in your life... I mean, if you don't carry out your task, I get to wreck your life," Blaise said simply.

Draco sighed. He was defeated. He had to fulfill his promise: his honor and reputation were at stake, and he couldn't lose that-now of all times, when his parents had just recently made him head of all the Malfoy businesses. "Fine," he said gruffly.

Blaise's face broke out into a grin. "Thanks mate."

"Don't be so happy. I'm not doing it for you," Draco answered, heaving another sigh.

"Here, let me help you. I told you that Granger broke up with Weasley, right? Anyway, according to some girls I know, she's moving out of the Burrow-or planning to. She's looking around for a place to stay."

"Yeah, so what?"

"You still don't get it? This is the best chance you'll be getting! Advertise a room out on the Daily Prophet. The Malfoy Manor's got lots of empty rooms doing nothing. Just make an elf clean one out and rent it to Hermione. Mind you, make it cheap. Apparently working for some sucky team didn't get her much money." Blaise rolled his eyes.

Draco was baffled. "What? Rent a room...in this house...to Granger?"

Blaise snapped. "Exactly! Well, then, good luck!"

With another large crack, he was gone.

* * *

><p>Hermione was looking through the Daily Prophet again. A room... Merlin, why weren't there any decent places she could live in? Every place had some hold back or another. Growling menacingly, she made her way to the kitchens in hope of sustenance. Ron still wasn't back; it had been a day and a half. Kicking a chair sullenly then plopping into it, she tried to reassure herself that it wasn't a problem at all, that the bloody git could go suck the face off the Great Squid if he wanted. Ew. Wait, no that was simply disturbing and... well, it was best not to linger on the thought.<p>

Shuddering, she stood by the window to watch the silent night, winter nights were her favorite as they were so clear and crisp. She had always stared out of these windows imagining the Burrow as hers and Ron's, imagining little red heads with curling hair... As a sudden burden like feeling descended on her stomach, she sighed to relieve some tension and stress, a clear plan was what she needed or insanity was her next route.

Just as she was about to turn around to get over her moment of angst, something sleek, gray, and fluffy hit her, and it hit her _hard. _

"OW! Aaah, what the heck?" she tried to quiet her voice to a hiss so as to not wake her adoptive parents.

"Meep?" the elegant gray owl gathered itself and cocked its head at her as if asking for her safety.

"Er... I'm good, thanks..." she muttered, wondering if she really had hit the crazy train.

The owl seemed to nod, then held out his leg pompously, to which an old fashioned scroll tied by a silver ribbon was attached. Curious as to which company was sucking up to her this time; she took the letter and unfurled it.

_Hermione Granger:_

_It has come to my attention that you are in need of accommodation. If it would please you, it would be my immense pleasure to help you in the matter. If you want information, do not hesitate to write back. _

_For reasons of my own,_

_Anonymous Correspondence._

Hermione stared at the paper. What. The. Hell. Brilliant, now she had an anonymous correspondence as well. Who would seriously think that she would be dense enough to happily go to live with some person who she didn't even know? Grabbing a quill from a convenient drawer, she scratched out a reply.

_CREEPY STALKER:_

_No idea how you know this, but I doubt I want to know. Anyhow, I don't do mystery letters, stay away from me and... well, don't stalk people. Really. It's creepy. _

_Pissed off, _

_Hermione Granger_

Nodding with satisfaction at the matter of fact-ness, Hermione sent of her letter with the well-mannered owl.

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><p><em>Dear Harry, <em>

_Once again, I write to you. The kids are having fun, riding on the broomsticks. So am I, I'm having so much fun writing to you right now. Oh, oh, oh! Today this one boy, you must know him, the troublemaker I nick-named Georgie, he almost fell off his broom during a Quidditch game. But don't worry! We had no injuries or anything! But it was so frightening, him clinging onto the broomstick-I thought I was gonna DIE! (Well, he was the one that was going to die-almost.) Anyhow, that was one episode, no biggie. _

_I'd love to have another moonlight dinner with you tonight. Tonight's the full moon, you know that? _

_Love you so much and reply soon, _

_Ginny _

_Dearest Ginny, _

_It's a relief to hear that little... Georgie didn't hurt himself. Dinner sounds fine; I'll bring the wine and cake. Is today the full moon? It makes me think of Lupin..._

_~Harry_

_Harry!_

_Oh Harry, really? We'll have a dinner tonight? Really? Oooohhhhh YAAYY! I'm glad, I really am not in the mood to listen to student gossips and hear about the latest plants from Neville, or listen to anything really. Madam Pomfrey was rather upset that I managed to almost kill Georgie. Ugh! It wasn't my fault at all! He simply has a knack for accidents! Hmph. Anyhow, I really want pasta. Can we have pasta? Meh, whatever, I'll get pasta anyways. _

_~ Ginny_

_Ginny,_

_Love, I think that cursing Peeves to sharing a toilet with Moaning Myrtle was a bit over the top. I mean, I was quite upset too... I really did want to drink that wine, not have it poured over our heads. But that bathroom is going to explode soon and we'll have Myrtle and Peeves arguing around the castle rather than hardly being around each other. I did appreciate the thought though; it was a very creative curse. Its fine, we can have a picnic some other day~ it worked out fine anyways because of the rain. _

_Much Love, Harry. _

* * *

><p>The next morning Hermione awoke to the same gray owl that had handed her the stalker letter last night. Today, instead of socking her in the stomach, it chose to bounce on her pillow and let out little screeches. Trying to smother it with her pillow, Hermione turned around and tried to capture her sleep back.<p>

"MEEP!" the owl practically pecked out her ear. Groaning into her pillow, Hermione sat up to read the latest letter.

_Hermione:_

_It's rather silly of you to assume that I'm a stalker. The fact that you quit your pathetic excuse of a quidditch team and that the carrot brain is walking around with some lady caked in make-up sort of implies such. I possess common sense, not a fondness of following people around. That's simply a troublesome hobby for those with... different ideas on life. Anyhow, I will excuse your ever so rude reply and once again extend my invitation. If you still feel discomfort, let's get to know each other. You already know a bit about me, but only the basics. Think of this as a secret forbidden courtship. _

_Amused, _

_Let's call me 'X'_

Scowling lightly at the logical explanation and dry, mocking, idea that she would be taken in by the idea of an unknown lover, Hermione rolled out of bed to pen her response.

_X:_

_Fine, kudos to you for having more brainpower than Ron. Why would I want to get to know you? You seem an awful lot like a self-righteous prat to me. Do not insult the poor carrots by defiling them with association with Ronald. It's atrocious. I also find it terribly insulting that you seem to think that you I would be so easily swayed by the idea of having a secret, forbidden, for Merlin knows what reason, paper relationship. In short, you really do not know a thing about me. Thank goodness. I won't be as kind as to ask you to get to know me. I also will reject your ever so kind invitation. I don't even know if I'm writing to a hippogriff or a mentally deranged wizard. _

_Annoyed, _

_Let's call me Your Highness Granger_

* * *

><p>Draco Malfoy sat at his study, once again, studying Hermione's letter. She was one confusing person, she insisted that she did not want to talk to him, but still continue to send the letters. Well, at least it showed that she was interested! He smirked as he read over her reply. He had not expected her to fall for so shallow a thought as being a secret lover, but she had taken the bait and given him an opportunity to continue talking so that she could tell him alllll about herself to prove what kind of a person she really was. He loved being so devious.<p>

_Dear Hermione... _

* * *

><p><em><strong>AN: Haha, I rather liked the whole letter thing going on, those were fun to write :) Sorry for the late update, school started, everyone got busy, and I fell sick :( ~E**_


	4. Chapter 4: Not a House Elf

_**Ekaterina's Disclaimer: **__I solemnly swear that we do not own Harry Potter. _

_**Blossom's Disclaimer:**__ Me too. _

_**Ekaterina's Note: **__Hello everyone! The weather has been really weird, and my annual fall sickness has come around :l Sucks... You can make me feel loads better if you review! :3 Ego boosts can do wonders for one's health \(-^.^-)/ Thanks once more to Duchygirl, your reviews are seriously appreciated :) Same goes for everyone who favorited and story alerted, much love!_

_**Blossom's Note:**__ Hi! Thanks again to Dutchygirl, who reviewed once again! Btw, our cookies are not mushroom-flavored; what kind would you like best? :)_

**ChApTeR 4: NoT a HoUsE eLf**

"She seems happier, do you think..."

"No, he's far too dense... Maybe she got a pet?"

"Don't be daft, have you seen any animals around other than her beloved cat?" the conspiratorial whispers began in the corner of the kitchen. It was the week of Christmas and everyone was over for dinner. Ginny and George were covering their conversation by taking an awfully long time pouring out drinks.

"Let's call Ron and ask, shall we?" Ginny murmured over the clinking of their glasses.

"Fine, let's have a bet!" George said enthusiastically.

Ginny snorted, "No. Bets with you are simply awful. Plus I already have a winning bet going on."

Pouting, George turned around to call Ron, "Ronnie, love! We have an urgent need for you in the kitchen."

Scowling, Ron left the bustling table and warm chatter of family and friends to join Ginny and George.

"Yeah? What is it?" he asked.

"Have you by any chance offered your hand in a lovely-"

"-Did you propose to Hermione?" Ginny cut into George's monologue.

Ron gaped at them, obviously startled. "I.. I wha- Bloody Hell, no! Why- what-"

Ginny pouted at George through Ron's spluttering, "Ah, too bad you were right this time. Maybe that's why she seems happier?"

George nodded thoughtfully, "Yeah, I mean, there's no way someone as brilliant as her would want someone so thickheaded as our brother..."

"Wait, where did this come from?" Ron managed to get out.

Ginny and George glanced at each other before sighing and simultaneously patting Ron's back and walking to the tables with warm cider.

* * *

><p>Draco pored over a random set of letters, wondering when would be a good time to invite her to live with him. Maybe telling her who he was would be a good idea too, but... he valued his life quite a bit. And sanity, having Granger yell at him would not help him whatever.<p>

_Granger:_

_My, a hippogriff or mentally deranged wizard? Sorry, love, neither. But I think that you do enjoy talking to moi, otherwise why else would be still be talking? Anyhow, isn't obvious that I have more brain power than Mr. I-Have-A-Really-Giggly-Stylist-On- My-Arm-And-I-Enjoy-Giving-Public-Shows-of-Attention? Right. So glad you keep that much faith in me! I'm hurt, seriously! You sound really grumpy. Do you wake up late? Ugh, how awful, you miss the beauty of the peace and early morning traffic! Have you found a new place to work yet? Staying with "Ronald" must be quite dull, I expect he's hardly ever home~ have you seen the tabloid covers recently?_

_-X_

_X:_

_Well, yes, now that you ask, I have seen the tabloid covers of 'Ronald' absolutely drunk, very sloppy, and hanging off his new, and apparently famous, stylist. Let's not go into details, ok? And scratch that, you're not deranged or a hippogriff, you sound like an awfully fluffy panda living in the midst of giant bamboo trees that consistantly knock the brain cells out of your measly skull. Maybe that's what I meant to say... No, I simply do not appreciate being woken up by a rather fluffy owl pecking my ear out and jumping on my pillow like some malfunctioning alarm clock with the voice of a cat singing out of a broken sprinkler. I'm debating on whether to take up the offer for Misty Mermaids or the Blackbeard Pirates. Both have awful names, but no matter, they are quite popular and good at that. _

_-Hermione Granger_

* * *

><p>It had been a week since the letters started and Hermione had found that it had been the fastest week ever. Instead of becoming a fountain of rage and angst, she was cheerful and absentminded all week. With the daily prophet becoming a gossip section more than news, it was hard not to be aware that Ron had found an interest in his new stylist, Myra Lyrstin. (<em>AN: Sorry to those named Myra )_

She had found herself so distracted and immersed in finding the source of and responding to the letters that Ron seemed like an insignificant blot in the back of her mind. She was in her own little detective world for now (detective for she needed to know who was writing). When she met people, a rather spacey smile graced her face and she excused herself at the very sight of the elegant grey owl she had nicknamed Athene.

Now she sat by her open window. The winter air was crisp, fresh, and the snow was falling without a sound, onto the roofs and the green firs. Hermione could see her own breath in little puffs. She reached out, thoughtfully, and a snowflake drifted into her hand. It was starting to bother her that the person with whom she was always talking to was still a mystery to her... Come to think of it, he seemed to know a lot more about her than she knew him (that creepy stalker).

Yet there was no apparent way to get to know him more... Any questions she asked, he avoided slyly by introducing a new topic, or something of that sort... Well, there was one way, but that was...

Hermione shook her head at the thought. Moving into his place... someone she barely knew... no... But then again, he didn't seem to be bad or anything...  
>Sighing, she started to close the window.<p>

With a sudden chirp and some clawing, Athene slipped into the room.

"You're here!" Hermione said, fondly brushing off the snow from the owl's feathers. As the bird hooted in reply, she untied a note from its leg.

_H. Granger: _

_To tell you one thing about my self, quidditch is simply not under my interests, although I have played during younger years. There are far more important things that concern me. However, I think of my knowledge highly enough to guarantee that whichever team you choose (and yes, the team names sound daft) will be better than the carrothead's. _

_As for your complaint of the "fluffy owl," have you thought that it might be your own fault for not waking up early enough? Besides, it must not bother you so much; you always reply within a day. _

_Now, I think I might move on, and ask you once more: Would you like to move into my house? It is quite a large one, with many rooms you may choose from. And if it may interest you more, there is a library consisting of several thousands of books, all of which you are welcome to reading, if you should rent a room. I must also inform you that the price is very, very inexpensive. I do understand that working for some sucky team that never won wouldn't provide you with a lot of money. How does 15 galleons a month sound?_

_And, moving on to persuading you, no place would be worse than the Burrow. Seriously speaking, doesn't it bother you to see your ex-thought-to-be-boyfriend? And to see his parents? And to be living under the same roof as them, eating at the same table with them? As you may have figured out, I'm not really all that dangerous, either, except if you should try to attack me first. Even then, I'm not sure whether my various hexes and curses should succeeding in killing you. Food is free, so no worries about that. Additionally, it's not like you can't move out. So if you're displeased in anyway, you may apparate out on the spot. _

_-X_

Hermione stared at the parchment in her hand. Thoughtfully, she brought out a quill and a piece of parchment, and started to write.

* * *

><p>Draco awoke from his thoughts to the sound of his owl pecking at the window. Well, she had replied, yet again, he thought as he got up to let the owl in. Quickly he undid the tied note from the creature and brought it to its cage to rest. As he made himself to his desk, he unrolled the parchment and started to read.<p>

_X: _

_Once again, I must ask you to give me your name or a better title I can address you with, because "X" just isn't working. _

_But anyway, moving on, I have to correct you and say that Mr. and Mrs. Weasley are like second parents to me. They are some of the most kindest people I know, and I'll miss them terribly when I move out of here. It simply does not bother me to eat with them or to live with them, save their revolting son. I don't understand how such a son was born! It would not be the least bit shocking if I were to hear that he was actually adopted. I really don't appreciate that you should talking about them in such a manner. _

_Oh, and where do you live? I like rooms with sunshine._

_-Hermione Granger_

Okay, so what was this? She was somewhat interested, because she did ask about his address. But that was another problem. How could he tell her where to come without revealing that he was living at Malfoy Manor? Well, he could send a house elf to the Burrow to "escort" her here. They could apparate together, directly into the house, perhaps into the library, since there probably weren't too many good memories from other parts of the house. Yes, that would work, that would...

"Tickly!" Draco called.

In a flash, a house elf entered the room and bowed. "Yes, Master?"

"Tickly, I need you to clean out some rooms, ones on the second and third floors that lets in the most sunshine. Someone will be moving in there, a girl, so decorate them, too."

"Yes, Master." With another deep bow, Tickly the house elf was gone.

* * *

><p>Hermione looked at the letter in her hand. Okay, here went nothing. She might as well try out this mysterious person's house.<p>

_Granger:_

_Alright, since it bothers you so much, you may call me Mr. X. _

_Okay, it's rather difficult to describe to you exactly where my house is. So I shall have a house elf go to the Burrow in two days, around noon, and escort you to the house directly, where you will be able to view the rooms and choose from them. I assure you, you will not be the least bit disappointed. _

_-Mr. X_

But one thing bothered her. The house elf. The house elf!

* * *

><p>Draco chuckled at the note he had just received. It was so...so...Hermione.<p>

_Wierdo person I refuse to call X or Mr. X:_

_I've decided that I might as well try out this mysterious house yours. I must be going crazy, but oh well. Just one thing. You make sure that whoever escorts me is NOT a house elf. NOT A HOUSE ELF. _

_I shall see you in two days' time, the day after Christmas. _

_-Hermione Granger_

Well, well. How could he forget? What had it been called? Stick? No, Spit? Oh, it was Spew! S.P.E.W. Well, that was just well. He could pick her up himself. But she might faint. Then he would be accused of assault. Butler or maid would be suspicious. Maybe a location near the manor and he could send out Pansy to collect her. He sighed in relief, Pansy it was.

* * *

><p>Christmas eve, Hermione was bouncing a bit on the couch as she, in her slightly tipsy state, told Ginny, who was home for Christmas vacation, she would soon be moving out of the Burrow.<p>

"He's an arrogant git, but it's so much fun to write to someone with brains even if I don't know them."

"Ooooh, how nice! Harry and I are exchanging letter too! I know I really shouldn't write during class but his reactions to Pig hurtling through the window are priceless! I ask the students to tell me how he reacts every time," Ginny cooed.

"Yeah... But... But I'll miss the Burrow," Hermione said softly.

Ginny threw an arm around her, "No worries, you'll have a fun life! Think about it, you're no longer stuck to that idiot I call a brother! Now you'll even have a good team to represent. But, do be careful, who knows, your new... forbidden lover, as you said he put it, could be some creeper..."

Chuckling, they clinked glasses and turned to converse with the rest of the family.

A bit later she was talking with Harry; he wasn't sure on how to react about Ron.

"Er, I'm sorry about the way things worked out," he muttered awkwardly while glaring at Ron and Myra who were across the room laughing about something or the other.

She really was quite pretty. And smart, Hermione had to admit, she knew what she was talking about. She watched a bit forlornly as Ron tucked a bit of her long black hair behind a pale ear which promptly turned pink with a slight blush.

She closed her eyes and thought of her mysterious correspondent. Hopefully, in two days she would be out of there, out of the range of Ron's dreamy eyes staring into space thinking about the girl next to him.

Hermione decided that now would be an opportune moment to speak of her departure,  
>standing up on a convenient chair, she coughed for attention.<p>

"Everyone, Harry, Ron, Ginny (but you already know), Mr. and Mrs. Weasley, George, Bill, Charlie, Percy, Fleur... Ronald's new stylist...(at this everyone gave a funny look at Myra who was sitting next to Ron) I wanted to tell you that I have left my job as PR rep for the Chudley Cannons. I'm joining the Misty Mermaids. I'm also moving out," she said dramatically.

There was complete silence for a moment. And then all of Hell broke loose, leaving a very smug Hermione at the pandemonium she had caused, somehow the idea of doing the unexpected left her satisfied.

* * *

><p>Hermione was nervously waiting for her "escort" to come. She was already packed, all of her clothes neatly folded and put into suitcases with a simple spell. Three additional suitcases had her valuables, books, parchment, and quills.<p>

There was a knock on her door.

"Come in," Hermione said, and Mrs. Weasley walked into the room.

She looked around sadly. "All packed?"

Hermione nodded. "My escort is due to come."

"I see..."

Hermione looked into her face. "But I'll miss you and Mr. Weasley."

Mrs. Weasley smiled. "We'll miss you, too. Come visit. You're always welcome here."

"I will," Hermione said.

_Crack! _Someone apparated into the room.

"Oooh, is this some kind of tearful farewell?"

"Who...Wait, Pansy?" Hermione asked, bewildered. "What are you doing here?"

"Well excuse me, but I am your escort, Granger." Pansy threw a dry smile.

"My...escort? You? Oh... I see. So let me ask this one question. Who is this mysterious person whose home I am going to live in?"

"Ooooh, sorry. Dra-I mean, he said to keep it a secret. Now enough with all of this blabbering. Grab your stuff and let's go!"

Mrs. Weasley sighed. "Leaving already? Won't you stay for some tea before going?" she asked.

Pansy turned her attention to her. "Sorry, Mrs. Weasley, but we're on a slightly busy schedule. You'll have to excuse us," she said politely.

Mrs. Weasley nodded. Her house was going to be even emptier now... Only her youngest son Ron would stay here... and more than half the time he was out with some girl with the rather pathetic excuse that he was practicing.

"Bye, Mrs. Weasley," said Hermione, embracing her in a hug.

"Alright, let's go." With another large _crack!_ they were gone.


	5. Chapter 5: Hide and Seek

_**Blossom's Disclaimer: **__Harry Potter belongs to us! Rowling stole it from us! (How dare she!) And I'm also the Easter bunny! And Ekaterina's a gopher-artichoke-towel-berry-sushi-viciousprincess-parrot(Squak!)! Plus the street light outside Mimiona's house is the MOOON! _

_**Ekaterina's Disclaimer:**__ If we owned Harry Potter, would we be writing fanfiction? Thought so._

_**Blossom's Note:**__ A round of applause to our reviewers: TamoraPierceAddict and DutchyGirl! And of course, to all those who favorited or story-alerted! I have a history test tomorrow, and should be studying, but then again, this story is also very important to me, so..._

_**Ekaterina's Note:**__ Hello y'all! I'm sooooooo so so tired :P Haha, anyhow, I am sooooo glad that our traffic for this story has gotten better~ thank you to everyone reading this, to everyone who favorited and alerted, and of course, our reviewers: TamoraPierceAddict and DutchyGirl! I mean, seriously, it really makes an author happy to get feedback on their story~ like it or hate it, tell us so we can improve! 3 much love!_

_**Mimiona's Note:**__ Bonjouir, ca va? Heehee, I'm taking French classes :) Boy, it's really hard. I cannot get the accent for the life of me. Jeez! Soooo, thank you soooo much to all you people (you know who you are!) and let me tell you, on several occasions have people mistaken the streetlight outside my house is the moon. It's depressing when I have to say, "No, that's just a lamp"... :D_

* * *

><p>ChApTeR 5: HiDe AnD sEeK<p>

_Crack!_

Hermione looked around curiously. All she could see were books, books, and more books. "Where are we, Pansy?" she asked. Naturally, she was still rather uncertain about the happenings of the past day, well, Pansy wasn't helping much either.

"I would expect for you to know, my bookworm." answered Pansy, "We're in the library of this house!"

Well so he wasn't lying about the thousands of books, thought Hermione, secretly very glad to have access to so many pieces of literature. "Ahhh, I see," she said aloud, looking around. "Well, it's kind of dark in here, isn't it..." With a flick of her wand, all the curtains were drawn, letting in the sunshine from outside. The snow outside glistened.

"Alright, Granger," Pansy said, squinting from the sudden brightness. "This is your new home. Apparently I need to show you to your rooms. You have a choice of a couple, you know..."

Hermione was busily looking through the first books she could get her hands on. "What?" she said distractedly. "Huh...? Rooms?"

"GRANGER!"

Hermione jumped ten feet.

"Come on! Let's get the heck out of this place, okay?" Pansy scowled.

"Oh, alright. I can take this book, though, right?"

"Yes, yes, whatever. I have a Christmas after-party in twenty minutes, so let's get this over with," Pansy huffed impatiently.

"Sure thing...Let me just get this book...and this one...Oh, and this one sounds interesting..." She continued sorting through books. "Merlin, I've always wanted to read this...This one! Is this the one by Jenna Kindles? And this one, too..."

"Let's get going, please?" Pansy said through gritted teeth.

"Okay, okay," Hermione muttered, grabbing one last book. She appeared from some corner of the library carrying a stack of about twenty or so books.

"Hey, you're really gonna read all that?" There was an exasperated Pansy waiting for her.

Hermione nodded. "Okay, let's go!"

"Yes, we'd better before you start getting more books..." muttered Pansy.

"What?"

"Oh, never mind. Let's get out of here, to your first room..."

Twenty or so minutes later, Hermione was lying on her new, comfortable bed. The room was pretty large and had four windows with flowered curtains. The curtains actually matched her bed covers and was a fireplace and a rocking chair next to it; the fire was glowing cozily.

An empty shelf stood against one wall for her picture frames and books; there were two closets and a set of drawers with a bedside lamp next to the bed. The floor had a fluffy rug and the walls were a pearly white. Beanbags were in one corner, not too far from the fireplace; a perfect place for reading, and a dresser on one side. There was also a desk and a rolling chair. Some quills and ink were on it, but other than that it was empty.

The room was, in short, very nice. Hermione was pleased. Well, of course some of the other rooms had been ridiculous. There was one with a princess-pink-fairy-I'm-a-six-year-old-girl theme... And another that was so big it was like a house in itself. Yet another had been the dullish bedroom ever. This one was perfect.

Humming softly, Hermione made her way to the desk. She dumped her newly acquired books onto it, and opened the top drawer to find a piece of parchment in it.

She opened the folded parchment to find a handwritten note in it...the writing was familiar.

_Granger: _

_ How do you like your room? I do hope it pleases you. _

_I'd like to let you know of a couple things. The library is next door, the bathroom is across the hall, and the kitchen is downstairs. There should be plenty of food in the kitchen, but should you want something else, please leave a note on the table. Other opened rooms may be visited. If you need anything else, please do not hesitate to ask. Simply leave a note. _

_ ~Mr. X._

It was weird that he left a note instead of telling her in person. Perhaps he was out, or busy...She looked again at the parchment. Well, no. He asked to leave a note for _everything!_ Aghh, this was so confusing. She didn't even know his NAME!

Hermione decided to think about it later. She grabbed a book and brought it to the bed with her. Soon she was absorbed in the pages about the history of Hogsmeade.

* * *

><p>Pansy apparated into Draco's room.<p>

"Well?" he demanded.

"She went into the room you thought she would, the one next door to the library. She seems pretty happy about everything," answered Pansy.

Draco nodded. "Good, thanks."

"Draco, wasn't Hermione tortured in the drawing room of this place?"

"Yeah...Gotta make sure she doesn't get in there."

Pansy shrugged. "Not my problem. Good luck with it. Oh, and you are planning to correspond with her through letters?"

"Yeah...There's no other way to hide the fact I'm Draco Malfoy. She'd probably run out of the house at the fact...no, she'd set the house on fire...rather, set _me_ on fire, _then _run out. What other chance would I have of charming her?" He sighed. "Stupid Blaise..." he muttered.

"Well, Draco, I've got a date with my hubby, after-Christmas party, you know?" Pansy smiled. "Care to join the party?"

"Nah..."

"Alright then, bye!" With that, Pansy apparated out of the room.

* * *

><p>Hermione woke up the next morning after a deep, restful sleep. Sitting up, she looked around confusedly at her surroundings before she remembered. She got out of bed, made it with a flick of her wand, and opened her closet. After dressing in a semi-formal skirt with a jacket, she went downstairs for her breakfast.<p>

Opening the refrigerator, she found a variety of fruits, vegetables, and juices. The cupboards held her dishes, bread, spices, pots, and pans, all spic and span and neatly organized. It was obvious there were house elves in this place, thought Hermione in disapproval.

She grabbed a shiny red apple from the fridge and sat down at the dining table to eat. To her surprise, she found another letter on the table.

Hermione gazed at it thoughtfully while biting into the oddly crunchy apple. Hmm.. Odd, she still didn't know who her house mate was...But she was eating and sleeping at this place as if there was nothing out of the ordinary. She wasn't quite alarmed...yet. She would be if she wasn't able to get out of the house later, to go and meet her new quidditch team.

_Hermione,_

_I really must apologize for not meeting you immediately, I sent out one of my friends to retrieve you, I hope the two of you got on well. Pansy has really changed since the war. Everyone has, extreme trauma and reality finally hit, I think. I fear that we will not be able to meet for a bit; please treat the house as your own and settle in. Don't mind me at all! When the time is right we will meet. For now, I fear we shall have to correspond through letters. _

_Is there anything in particular that you need, please don't hesitate to leave a note. I'll try my best to get it to you by the next day, I assure you. _

_ ~Mr. X._

_PS: Did you sleep well? I hope the room suited you. _

Hermione gazed thoughtfully at the letter while biting into a particularly crunchy apple. This note had been in the kitchen the morning after her arrival, so she assumed it had been there since last night. Mr. X. What kind of name was that? Perhaps his name started with X. Xavier? Hermione shook her head. He certainly didn't write like a Xavier. And Pansy. Pansy...He knew Pansy. And knew of her change after the war, too, which Hermione herself had not failed to catch. Perhaps he had went to Hogwarts, that seemed quite likely. Who could it be? She simply could not think of anyone who would do such a thing... it was really a mystery.

"Accio quill and parchment," Hermione muttered, and a quill came zooming into the room, followed by a piece of parchment. Smiling slightly, she began to write.

* * *

><p>This correspondence through letters seemed to be working, thought Draco as he looked through the letters that he had kept for the last couple days. Except for the fact that he really hadn't been trying to charm her or anything; the conversations were a bit... not ro<p>

_House mate_:

_I did sleep well, thank you very much. It was a pleasant bed and a nice room. Oddly enough, the apple that I'm eating right now is super crunchy. And juicy. It's wierd. Would there be a reason for that? For the time being, I have no request of anything. This house seems to be very large, so I think I shall take some time to venture through some of the open rooms, if you don't mind of course._

_ ~Hermione Granger_

_ Hermione:_

_You are very welcome to look through the open rooms of this place, should it entertain you. As for the apple, it is not the apple that you were eating that is crunchy, it is simply that you are used to less classy, less proper apples._

_I find it rather curious that you should not ask of who I am. Are you not curious of my identity?_

_ ~Mr. X._

_Person Unknown:_

_ Xavier. Is that your name? I hope it is not, for it doesn't sound like you AT ALL. But if it is, oh well. Well, I can't deny the fact that I want to know who you are, but then I also know that you would not tell me, should I ask, anyway. So I won't even bother pestering you about it. _

_ About the apples... I don't know who you are, but you sure have your head in the clouds. I don't know for sure, but this peach I am eating right now seems a lot sweeter than usual, too. Do you prefer sweet things?_

_ ~Hermione_

_Hermione:_

_ I shall tell you one thing about myself. I am NOT Xavier. Where did you get that idea from?_

_ Oh, and are you eating every time you reply to my letters?_

_ ~I am NOT Xavier_

_The person who is not Xavier:_

_ The only reason I guessed Xavier was because it started with X. And yes, I happen to be eating every time I reply because you always leave it on the dining table. _

_ ~You know who I am_

_Hermione:_

_ Are you eating as you read this? _

_Oh. I see about the X/Xavier thing. Well, I meant it more as a mysterious variable, but I suppose it did sound rather ominous. _

_If you like exploring, there's a rather lovely botanical garden by the east wing, right near the outdoor swimming pool._

_As a matter of fact, I do like sweet things. I never quite liked them until the end of the war when I realized that life was not worth depriving oneself of things that they like. Please, whatever you do, do not tell me that that was "soooo deep!" That's what Pansy said when she found out and one airhead is enough for me. _

~X.

_Secret House mate: _

_ No, I am not eating as I write this, you may be assured. This one was pinned on the window that faces my room door. (I would expect you to know; didn't you put it here?)I have one quick question. How do you manage to hide from me, when we're living in the same house? Yes, this house is large, but... I don't know if you realized that I've explored practically the whole place by now! Do you live in the garage? (That's where I'll be looking through next.) Why are you hiding from me? Are you my worst enemy or something? Well, it is a rather interesting viewpoint of life... I like spicy, I think I developed some sort of liking while I was on the run and we had very little variety in food. _

_ ~Hermione Granger_

Here, Draco had laughed. She actually wasn't too far off the mark... her worst enemy... yeah, that suited him...He was probably only beaten by Voldemort, or perhaps Rita Skeeter, but he doubted about the latter. And one question? That was four questions, to be exact.

_Hermione:_

_ One question? More like four! And I'm sorry, but I can't really answer many of them; only, I think I may say that I do NOT live in the garage. And sorry, love, but you only finished the middle. The east wing, west wing, and back yard still remain. Do try not to get lost, but if you do, just call for a house elf, her name is Momo. (I realize you don't like using house elves, but if you get lost, it might be helpful.)_

_ Ah, spices make me sneeze!_

_ ~Mr.X_

* * *

><p>Hermione woke up feeling excited, her winter holidays were almost over and her new job would start soon. She had not looked much into her new workplace due to her time restraint and emotional stress, it was a sincere hope that the team was good that made her agree. Two days until new years, a fresh start on her life. She downed a shot of apple juice with the happy sentiment.<p>

_Dear X:_

_Well, two days before the new year, new life, and new job. I have yet to meet you. Seriously, where are you? I know that this is really quite selfish of me after all that you have done, but I really want to meet you. It's sort of lonely since I moved here, I mean, it's wonderful and everything, but everyone is still shocked so they don't know how to respond to me. I haven't been out of the house because of unpacking, settling, and exploring. _

_ Lonely, _

_ Hermione._

* * *

><p>Draco reread the letter. Well, there was certainly an improvement there. Dear X<em>. Dear<em> X. Now if that was Dear Draco...

Lonely. She was lonely... Draco realized that, he was, in a sense, lonely, too. But he was rather used to being alone, on the otherhand, Hermione probably was used to being with a bunch of people. Sighing, he brought out his quill and started to write. Now was the right time to reveal himself. And not just, oh by the way, I'm Draco Malfoy, that would obviously not work. He had an idea, though, that would get her interested.

* * *

><p>Hermione found her next letter in the book she was reading. Grinning, she read through the script on the parchment.<p>

_Dear Hermione:_

_Lonely, are you? Yes, I'd expect you to be used to having many people around you. Seclusion might not work with you; on the other hand, it works quite well with me... I'm rather used to being alone. To tell you a bit more about myself, my parents weren't exactly the ones to be loving and kind, even to their son. I'm an only child, you see. I'm related to just about everyone of my house, though I guess that made up for it. How about a new years present- if you can solve it?_

_ ~ Dearest X_

Huh? What New Year's present? Confused, Hermione looked down to her book again to find another piece of parchment that she hadn't noticed before.

"_I like apples."_

Oh. She was supposed to solve the clues to find her mysterious house-mate. And that was obviously the first clue.

Hermione shrugged and decided to try it out. New Year's eve was that very evening and she had nothing planned. Hence her time would be spent on her new scavenger hunt to find her unknown benefactor.

Hermione reread the clue: _"I like apples."_

What sort of clue was that? She glared at the paper. Apples. Apples? Smiling, she headed down to the kitchens.

_"You can't bloody apparate in or out of Hogwarts!"_

That one had been under the fruit bowl. At least she had a slight start. But what did apparation and Hogwarts have to do with her house mate? Thinking of the clue made her think of her days at Hogwarts. All those days with Harry and Ron (ugghhh him)... Of course, as Hermione remembered with some smugness, _she_ had been the one that supplied the knowledge a lot of the time. How many times had she said that to the two boys? "You can't bloody apparate in or out of Hogwarts!" It was funny, really, how they didn't know that, all you had to do was read _Hogwarts, A History... _

_Hogwarts, A History?_ Chuckling, Hermione quickened her steps to the library.

_"So far, so good. But, how about this. I'm where you'd never think to check." _As she had suspected, Hermione found it in the pages of _Hogwarts, A History._

"Right, in this city of a house, I'm supposed to think of where you might be...or should not be" she muttered savagely. But then a small underlined word caught her eye._ "Sunlight." _ Sunlight? Sunlight!

Panting slightly, Hermione stared at the door leading to her room uncertainly for a moment before closing her eyes and swinging the door open.

"Bloody hell, Granger, I thought you would never get here," drawled a voice. Shrieking, Hermione slammed the door shut and stood staring at her door, wide eyed, before opening it again. No, no, it couldn't be...that voice...no... But yep, there was a bored-looking, blonde, dubbed ferret, sitting on her bed, examining his nails.

"M-Malfoy!" she managed to squeak out.

"No shit, Sherlock," was the dry response. He jumped off the bed and tossed a paper wrapped package with a silver ribbon (just like the letters) at her as he looked at her with interest.

"What are _you_ doing here?" Hermione was terribly confused.

"Well, I don't know. Maybe I _live _here?"

"WHAT?" she gaped at him in horror. Then she glanced down at the package in confusion. "And what's this? It's not going to explode, is it?"

"No, that won't explode, most unfortunately," said Draco with a smile. "And, since you still don't seem to grasp it, I'm Mr. X."

"Oh. OH. I... live here? With _you_?" she blurted out.

Draco gave a backwards glance as he started to walk out of her room, "Open the package. Downstairs by the main entrance and ready in half an hour."

Hermione fumbled with the package to reveal a silver dress; it was quite lovely with a deeper neck than what she was accustomed to, but lovely all the same.

"What is with that guy and silver?" she muttered in exasperation.

Without even knowing why she was bothering to do so, she hurried to dress- there was a new beginning waiting for her.

* * *

><p><em>(AN general: Phew, one loooooong chapter... Anyhow, more letters cause people seemed to like them! Ummm... Thanks for reading! OH. For the dress, check our profile, mk?)_


	6. Chapter 6: By the Prickling of My Thumbs

_**Mimiona's Disclaimer**__: I own Harry Potter and his entire univer- BOOM! *little pieces of Mimiona sway down to the ground...*_

_**Blossom's Disclaimer**__: Oh, goodness, Mimiona's disclaimer is gory. :( _

_Anyway, whatever belongs to Rowling is hers. We won't try to steal it...yet. _

_**Ekaterina's Disclaimer: **__We solemnly swear that we own Harry Potter. Tee hee, my favorite disclaimer if you have not noticed yet :D._

_**Mimiona's Note: **__I'm a Libra! Hehe... _

_**Blossom's Note: **__Alright! I got google chrome and it's SO much better! It makes writing super faster, too! Oh, and thanks to everyone that reviewed! Much love 3_

_**Ekaterina's Note:**_ _Ah, we published the last chapter faster, but somehow it was waaaaay longer ^^'. We spent a good amount of time deciding on the house elf's name... Momo is a very cute name, don't you think? On a more serious note, Reviews! I know this is a bit like nagging, but really, reviews are what we dream of! Pleaaase? With dramione on top? :3 3 Thank you to DutchyGirl, hp1234567fan, Kallisti's Avengeance, and ClarissaJackson. If I missed anyone, please give a shout and I'll be sure to fix that :) DutchyGirl, I think you're amazing for reviewing every chapter. Thanks! Oh, we were reviewing the history of Rome, and our teacher asked me who supposedly founded it. I said Romulus and Remus. He responded, "Well, they left Remus quite out of the chapter! It's terrible!" So, I yelled out, "They left out Tonks too!" Only about half our class got it but it was amusing none the less :)_

**ChApTeR 6: By ThE pRiCkInG oF mY tHuMbS...**

Hermione checked herself for the last time in the mirror. What was she thinking? It was like a mouse walking into a lion's mouth- sorry, snake's mouth. Obviously it wasn't what it seemed to be. She was still confused, bewildered, to be exact. Mr. X = Draco Malfoy? What kind of equation was that, anyway? Hermione wanted to write "false" next to it and get it over with, but she found herself fixing her necklace instead. What was she even expecting? That the ferret would be nice, let her rent a cheap luxurious room for a while? Eh-hem, no way. So why was she doing this? Uh, she had no idea. Sighing, Hermione tucked her wand into her purse, just in case.

Hermione made her way downstairs, attempting to look graceful, maybe even- dare she say? Sexy. Once she reached the bottom of the stairs, the she found a note taped to the end of the banister.

_Dear Hermione,_

_I expect you to be shocked. But I want to tell you that this isn't a mean joke, or a prank. I... I think, if we could try, we could honestly get along. I would like to get a chance to speak with you, so, we're going to eat dinner together tonight in a rather pleasant place- hence the dress. Maybe, we could forget all differences for an evening? I would like to properly meet you, and I mean _you_, not the muggleborn, know-it-all Gryffindor from Hogwarts. But as the you now. _

_~Draco Malfoy_

Hermione snorted. Of course. How Draco Malfoy. "I would like to get a chance kill you, or at least seriously maim you, so I will demand that you wear this dress and that you eat dinner with me." Basically summarized the entire letter. But still, at the end, he did seem genuinely interested and thoughtful. So maybe that was why she found herself, much to her surprise, walking to the main hall to be picked up by Mr. X.

Her heart pounding despite herself, Hermione walked into the hall. It was decorated magnificently, with flowers and candles. A brightly lit crystal chandelier hung from the ceiling. She turned around and surveyed it with surprise and mild shock. Up till now the hall had been quite plain, styled with renaissance murals on the ceiling and pillars decorated with different Greek dieties and flowers. It was impressive, if not a tad bit dull for her tastes.

However, one thing was missing. The Slytherin himself.

Hermione looked up as footsteps sounded down the hall. As much as she hated to admit, he did look rather dashing dressed up, silky blonde hair... greyish eyes... ack, no, those thoughts were so not going to infiltrate her currently, relatively sane mind. Trying to cover up her 'mild interest', she said curtly, "You're late, Mr. X."

"That's Draco to you, love," replied Draco without a hint of sarcasm in his voice.

"Oh please, bring me a basin. Are you trying to make me gag or something? What do you mean, 'love'?" Hermione scoffed.

Draco turned to Hermione, very obviously looking up and down her body. She self-consciously crossed her arms. He looked up at this, and caught her eyes. "Are you feeling ill?" he asked finally, in a voice that reflected some degree of concern.  
>Hermione ignored his comment and glared at him. "Shall we get going?" she asked rather coldly.<p>

Draco smirked, "After you, milady..." She looked up in surprise as a side door swung open majestically, leading out to the backyard. There was a small square with a neat sign reading, "apparation station."

"You have an... apparation station?" she asked skeptically. "What's that even _used _for?"

"No questions, unless they relate to us right now," he said absentmindedly while running a hand through his hair. Hermione was intrigued. How did it stay so perfect? Hers, if treated that way, wouldn't last neatly for a minute.

She raised her hand experimentally and ran her hand through his hair as if patting a dog. "Ooooh, nice, Malfoy!" she giggled. He looked at her like she was insane, and gave a little cough but decided to ignore it for the time being. Hermione brought her hand down quickly. "Well, what are we doing now?"

"Still didn't catch it? We're apparating," said Draco with another smirk.

"And where are we going?" asked Hermione.

"No more questions. Come on." With that, Draco grabbed Hermione's hand and started half-dragging, half-pulling her to the "apparation station.

"WAIT, Stop! Stop!" Hermione demanded.

Draco halted in his steps, and Hermione wrenched her hand out of his grasp.

"What? Why?" Draco asked, his voice expressing mild curiosity, as if he really didn't know why Hermione didn't want to go.

"Why? _Why? _You seriously have no idea why I'm so confused?"

Draco nodded and sort of shrugged.

"For one thing, you're demanding I do this and that without a single bit of explanation!"

"Well, I want to get to know you."

"Right, because stuffing me in a dress-", which was actually quite gorgeous, she grudgily admitted to herself, though wouldn't admit it even if at gunpoint, "and then saying that we are going for dinner impromptu is so not confusing," sighed Hermione exasperatedly. "The only explanation I got was 'No more questions.'" She glared at Draco before continuing. "And now I'm apparently spending my New Year's eve with my childhood arch-enemy!"

"Er...Fresh start?" he offered with a peace implying shrug.

Hermione stared at him, "Honestly, you can be so clever in studies and such, but when it comes to common sense, you're quite lacking. I guess you really don't get it, huh?" She sighed and pinched the bridge of her nose. "Okay, you have tonight to prove yourself. If I still hate you, I'm moving out. I'm only going along with whatever evil scheme you have because of the letters."

Draco beamed, "Brilliant! So can we go now? Our reservation is in exactly one minute."

"Wha-" Hermione was cut off as he apparated them both to their destination.

* * *

><p>Hermione looked around confusedly. They were in a dimly lit room; there was a dining table in front of her. Candles were set in elegand holders on the table, and foods of different sorts were being carried around by pleasant looking waiters to other couples at their tables.<p>

Draco walked up to the reception table, "Hello, reservation for Malfoy-"

"Ooooh, Mr. Malfoy! Of course, of course. Please, follow me!" the woman at the desk eagerly leapt up to lead them to their table.

"We arranged everything as you instructed, I hope you don't mind the other tables near you , we are quite busy due to the occaison of the New Year..."

He allowed a small smile and glanced at Hermione, "Is it fine?"

She didn't bother asking, she was too busy gaping at the scenery from the balcony.

"Oh... I can see all of muggle London from here," Hermione gasped in delight.

Draco rolled his eyes, "Yeah, do you want to sit here or somewhere more... secluded?"

"HERE!" she squealed enthusiastically. Draco nodded and the woman seated them.

Hermione stared at the man across from her. Definately the same stuck up kid from school. But hotter. And less rude, if that was believable. Well, at least so far. She wasn't really sure what to say, so far she had made three comments on the view before lapsing into an awkward silence. She shifted in her seat, this was really wierd.

Draco scrutinized the lady across from him. She was still like the wary know all, but prettier. Her hair was smoother and longer, in slight caramel waves. At least she wasn't as arrogant as she had been in school, that would have simply been troublesome. He smiled and decided to pick up the lingering conversation before it really got uncomfortable.

"So, Hermione," he started as the food arrived, "how do you find my choice of dining?"

"Very nice," she responded politely. If she was going to do this, she was going to be as civil and distant as possible.

Draco raised an eyebrow, "Two words? Am I really that awful company that you don't want to talk to me?"

Hermione flushed a bit, "No, it's not, well, I...I was... Well... um..."

Draco interrupted her speech of ums and wells. "Let's eat," he said curtly. "The food is getting cold.

And the two ate their pasta in an awkward silence for some time.

"Uh, well, Draco," Hermione winced at the name. It felt sort of weird to say it. "Tell me a bit about yourself." She only said it to break the silence; she never knew that no sound could be so loud.

Draco played with his fork with a bored expression, "I told you about myself in the letters. I want to know about you, you never said anything about yourself."

"That's only because you knew everything already."

"Oh yeah. My brilliant deductive skills. I forgot," he said dryly.

"Fine, here. Hi! I'm Hermione Granger, nice to meet you. I'm currently 23, saviour of the world, best friend to the biggest celebrity, and just quit working for the crappiest quidditch team ever! I also recently learned that the person I loved since fourth year actually never liked me, but his beautiful stylist! How about you?" Now she just sounded angry and bitter, she realized, and plastered a smile onto her face.

Draco looked at the fake smile on her face with sympathy. "Draco Malfoy. Aspiring to charm Hermione Granger," he said shortly with flash of a grin. Hermione gaped at him and spluttered. He called for the check and paid while she tried to compose herself.

* * *

><p>As they walked out of the restaurant, Draco looked down and smiled a bit at Hermione's still pink face. It seemed that Ron hadn't complimented her much, hence the great reaction.<p>

Hermione noticed the smile and blushed a bit harder.

"Is something wrong?" he asked innocently. "Maybe it's the cold turning your cheeks pink."

She held her burning cheeks, mortified, "Ah... Yeah, must be the cold..." Feeling her face grow even hotter, she looked away. Draco smirked.

"Oh look! Fireworks!" Hermione exclaimed, thankful for the distraction.

Draco stared at Hermione. "Oh yes, beautiful. But not as gorgeous as you," he said with a smile that looked more like a smirk.

Hermione burned scarlet...again. "Shut up," she said.

Draco looked at her with fake wonder. "Really? I don't know, you seem like you like me talking...seeing as you turn pink every time I say something."

"Ass."

"I am quite awful, I know," he chuckled and looked at his wrist watch. "Oh my, exactly one minute to New Years!

"New Years?" Hermione narrowed her eyes at Draco, who was advancing closer to her.

He leaned in even more, eyes sparkling a bit, "You _do_ know what happens when midnight strikes, right?" he asked, almost in a whisper.

Hermione stepped back and hissed when she hit the wall behind her. Draco leaned in a bit farther.

"What happens?" she whispered warily, her heart pounding.

Draco smirked. "We go home and get a good night's sleep so you can prepare for work day after," he said briskly, he patted Hermione's head like one would to a child, then grabbed her arm and apparated them home.

"Night!" he said cheerfully, with an evil grin. He sauntered into the house, leaving a bewildered Hermione standing at the "apparation station."

* * *

><p>Hermione plopped onto her bed, thoroughly confused. What had happened tonight? Draco seemed different...grown up...Yet he teased her possibly every moment of the evening; making her blush was probably his greatest pleasure in life. She glanced down and realized she was still wearing the silver dress. She dressed into her pajamas absent-mindedly and got into her bed again. Trying to clear her mind, she grabbed <em>Hamlet<em> and opened to her page.

"_Doubt thou the stars are fire;_

_Doubt that the sun doth move;_

_Doubt truth to be a liar;_

_But never doubt I love."_

Not finding it fitting for her mood, she picked up Macbeth and turned to a random page.

"_By the pricking of my thumbs,_

_Something wicked this way comes."_

With a quiet yelp of surprise, she got a papercut on the edge of her thumb. Grumbling, she sucked on her thumb and pouted at the page; something evil had to Malfoy. Draco Malfoy, the dragon of bad faith... Sighing, Hermione closed the book and brought the covers over her head.

* * *

><p>Hermione woke up to the sound of the wind rustling the trees outside her window. She felt pleasantly rested. Opening the closet to dress, she found herself gazing at the silver dress from yesterday. She gently fingered it before changing into her formal robes; today was her first day of work for the Misty Mermaids.<p>

By the time she walked out of her bedroom, she was neatly dressed, her hair combed back and tied into one ponytail that gave her a sophisticated look, and she had applied some slight makeup to her face, with some glittery eye liner and a dash of lip gloss.

There was someone seated at the dining table when she walked into the kitchen.

"Draco?"

"Finally up, Sleeping Beauty?" he asked in a bored voice.

Hermione flushed and seated herself across from her. "I didn't sleep for that long! Ooh, pancakes!" she said, just to say something.

"Eat. Today's the first day of work for you; can't be hungry," Draco said, dumping a pile of pancakes on Hermione's plate. "Here, there are some strawberries and blueberries, and the pitcher has the maple syrup."

"Ah...Thanks," Hermione said. She carefully cut a piece of the pancake and tasted it. Mmm, not bad, she thought. It was light and warm, almost melting in her mouth. "It's good," she said, a genuine compliment. "Did you make it?"

Draco nodded. "Yup, out of the pancake mix."

Hermione coughed. "Pancake mix...? This fluffy goodness came from pancake mix?"

He chuckled. "No, actually, Momo made it, _not_ out of pancake mix. You still take things so seriously," he said.

Hermione looked at the pancake she was eating. "A house elf made this?" she asked.

"That's right. Are you gonna refuse to eat again?" he asked, smirking.

Hermione paused, seriously considering the matter, but then shook her head and bit into another piece. "Nope," she said, after swallowing. "Maybe next time, when I don't have work."

Draco peered at her. "Well, I see you've learned to be a little more practical. Say, do you have make-up on?" he asked. "Hmm, looks nice."

Hermione choked on her strawberry.

Draco handed her a glass of orange juice. "Are you okay?"

Hermione coughed, spraying orange juice everywhere.

Draco grimaced before clearing the table and his face with a flick of his wand. "I dare say that you have had enough breakfast," he said.

She nodded, her deadpan. "I think I'll go now. Don't wanna be late," she muttered before apparating.

* * *

><p>Hermione entered her new building with slight caution, this was going to be her new job for Merlin knew how many years, and she had better not screw up on the first day. It was also New Years day, and being a tad bit superstitious, she believed that if this day went well, so would the rest of her year.<p>

She walked to the desk at the lobby, "Hi, I'm Hermione Granger. I'm here for the new PR job position of the Misty Mermaids?"

The man behind the desk smiled and directed her to the fifth floor. As she entered the pearly, shell styled elevator, Hermione marveled at the beauty and elegance of the building. The edifice was tall and majestic, the walls and floors made of what looked like black onyx and pearls. There were large windows every so often, giving the impression that she was in a high class hotel rather than an office building.

As the elevator gave a light sound alerting her of her arrival. Taking a deep breath and praying that she had made the right decision, Hermione stepped out. Taking brisk strides down the hall, she walked into the room that had a number of people milling around and talking, and a door with a plaque reading her name as current head of Misty Mermaid PR.

Our dear heroine cleared her throat, "Hello! I'm Hermione Granger, new PR head..."

She was relieved as she got to know the members on the public relations team; they seemed like nice people, quite friendly and considerate enough to try to make her feel less nervous. So far, so good, although apparently it being her first day of work didn't excuse her for the work. The first thing she saw as she walked into her new office were stacks and stacks of various papers that she needed to fill out, read, decide, or otherwise shred in the paper shredder.

Midway through her day, a memo flew onto the office desk, it was a paper folded into the shape of a crane. The people looked at Hermione expectantly, so she picked up the paper and unfolded it.

_Miss H. Granger:_

_Floor 9, Room 913. Meet your boss! 3:00 PM today. _

_~ You're Boss. _

"Aw shi-!" she hissed. In her excitement to start work, it had completely slipped her mind to meet her new boss. She checked her watch, 2:50 PM. Still enough time to run up and make up for it without seeming as rude as she had probably come across as.

"Um. I neglected to meet the boss," Hermione said in explanation to her curious coworkers.

Someone coughed. There was some awkward shuffling until someone suggested that she left, for he probably would not appreciate being kept from lunch.

* * *

><p>Floor 9, the door at the end of the hall, room 13. 13, the unlucky number, too. Hermione sighed in front of the door; this had better go well. Checking her reflection in a hand mirror from her purse, Hermione tentatively knocked on the door.<p>

"Just a moment!" called out a voice. She could hear the dull buzz of conversation.

"Alright, come in!" the voice called again.

"... and give that letter to Sherry before she leaves with them for Peru tomorrow..." she could see a blurry figure through the wrought iron partition gate, it was in an oriental fashion. As to not intrude, she glanced around the elaborate room, the walls were a warm sort of brown, a wooden border engraved with what appeared to be dragons circled where the ceiling and walls met. There was a creme sofa against one wall and a window stretched across the other, giving a clear view of most of the city. The other two walls were quite simple, one with a mural of what appeared to be Paris in darker shades of brown.

Growing impatient as the voices were still talking, she peered around the partition in hopes to catch sight of her new boss without being seen. Blonde hair. Tall figure. Not good. Emmitting a sort of half strangled scream, she glanced at the two people in the room. One was a woman, small and slight, she looked an awful lot like Myra, except her hair was a lighter shade of brown and her eyes were a chilly blue. It was a bit disconcerting. The other character, on the other hand, was not who she expected to see.

"Wait, you work here too?" she gaped at the man in front of her.

"Honey, this is your boss," the woman answered sympathetically.

"You didn't know? Malfoy Industries funds various quidditch teams, well actually most quidditch teams, minus the Chudley Cannons...You happened to choose Misty Mermaids; the Blackbeard Pirates were on level 4, so you would have ended up here one way or another," Draco drawled.

"You...fund...the Misty Mermaids?"

Draco nodded impatiently. "Basically, we basically give money to the quidditch teams to get back even more money. So all games, projects, activities that the teams do are monitored by us; we don't want our money going to waste."

Hermione turned and rested her forehead against the cool wall for support. This was NOT happening. Hopefully, last night had really messed with her head and this was all some sort of crazy dream. She started hitting her head against the wall in the hope of waking up.

"Graaaaaanger... I'm bored, let's have lunch!" he called out in a mild tone.

Shit. Not a dream. She turned around with the biggest, childish pout Draco had ever seen. He burst into chuckles, which he tried to turn into discreet coughs, and turned to the table.

"I hate you," she muttered savagely and sat down.

* * *

><p>Hermione walked into the house past eleven PM, completely exhausted. First day of work, so many things to do. Papers stacked up on her new desk, in her new office; meeting all the players; getting to know the situation with the past public relations manager (which was terrible); fixing the various arising problems; working non-stop after her stressful lunch, and not taking a break up until now... Her head throbbed, she felt a little warm. Life, in short, was HELL.<p>

Sighing, she started to make her way up the stairs. There was a crack, and Draco Malfoy appeared before her. Hermione didn't even look up.

"How was your first day of work?" he asked with a cruel smile.

"Terrible, thanks to my boss," she muttered before continuing up the stairs.

"Was it that bad?" Draco asked with a smirk.

"Oh, I don't know. I've been working eleven hours straight after lunch break; I'm better than ever!" Hermione said sarcastically. "Move."

Draco looked at Hermione's face. She really didn't look too well; he decided to let her off for now. "Alright," he said, and apparated away.

* * *

><p><em>Blaise:<em>  
><em>How the hell you you expect me to charm a witch who blushes at every compliment I give her and then gets suspicious and rude when she thinks I'm going to kiss her? Mate, she's lovely, but ginger didn't do a very good job charming her. It's going to take a lot of work to get her to interact with me properly first. Oh, and today she learned that I'm her boss...<em>

_-Draco_

* * *

><p><em>Dear Harry,<em>  
><em>Did you hear? Hermione's Mr. X turned out to be Draco Malfoy! And her boss, guess who he is! Draco Bloody Malfoy! I'm seriously tempted to go and beat the guts out of Blaise, bet he set this up so we could lose! I'm simply furious that Hermione is living with that arrogant bas- *coughs* right, I'm trying to curb my swearing habit. The children were a bit shocked when I gave a steady steam of curses when the bludger hit me yesterday. Don't want to frighten them... Anyhow, I'm sad that we missed New Years with Hermione. Remember I sent the letter a couple days ago? Well stupid Ron intercepted the letter, and he wrote to me saying that if Hermione wanted to get revenge on his team because they were awful, then he wouldn't be having any of it. Stupid git. As if it was about his team, as sucky as it is. Anyway, we should go visit Hermione soon. Now that we're back at Hogwarts Ron can't stop our letters anymore. I'll see you later today, then.<em>

_Much love,_  
><em>Ginny<em>

_Dear Ginny,_  
><em>We are going to be paying a visit to Malfoy Manor tonight. I sent an owl after reading your letter, hope you don't mind. I want to persuade Hermione to move again, we can support her if she needs it, but there is no way that she is going to be living with HIM. I know, we supposedly solved all our problems, but... I don't quite trust him right now with the bet and everything. I don't want Hermione broken hearted again, I was so relieved that she got over Ron so well, but that Blaise really screwed things up. We'll have to talk things over with Malfoy tonight, to see how he managed to get Draco into the <em>_mess, too. And yes, it was awfully horrid of Ron to stop all our letters. Anyhow, I think Malfoy said it would be a casual affair of coffee and tea, be ready by 6, if you can. _

_Loads of love, _  
><em>Harry<em>

* * *

><p><em>(AN general: So, another rather longish chapter! Haha, this one was fun to write, it's been a while since we had conversations without letters. We will still have letters, but not necessarily between Draco and Hermione. OH. Draco Malfoy= Dragon of Bad Faith in French. Thought that was amusing. :) Review, our dearest readers, it will make us happier than you know)_


	7. Chapter 7: Plotting Revenge

_**Ekaterina's Disclaimer: **__I know I can, I know I can [own Harry Potter] Sorry, Thomas the Engine that Could, I don't think you can apply that method here..._

_**Blossom's Disclaimer: **__Harry Potter belongs to Rowling. :)_

_**Ekaterina's Note: **__WOW! We got more reviews for the last chapter, and for every single one I wished I could hug them xD Thank you guys so sosososososooso much, I love you all so much! Hmmm so... PSATs, huh... Ugh, evil little things... Yeah, so sorry for the giant gaps between updates, as school goes on our workload tends to build up :P therefore, our updates will probably be longer and with slightly longer gaps (like recently). But nothing as drastic as a month or anything :) Read and Review, darlings! PS. New Evanescence album! So good 3_

_**Blossom's Note: **__Thanks for the more frequent reviews! Greatly appreciated! Oh yes, we're busy; school work can be very time-consuming...Sorry for the rather slow updates. But we promise we'll try to upload as soon as possible! _

**ChApTeR 7: pLoTtInG rEvEnGe**

Harry walked down the hall towards the staff lounge to pick up Ginny.

"Ready?" he asked when she brightly greeted him with a hug and a light peck on his cheek; she also gave a small attempt at smoothing his hair but decided against the trouble.

Ginny groaned. "Yeah," she said with a slight sigh. "I never thought I'd be seeing Malfoy again." Her tone reflected some degree of disgust.

Harry shrugged. "Our fault, I guess," he said, sliding his hand into hers. "We shouldn't have made a bet with Blaise...the Slytherin he is."

"Well, from our point of view, the bet seemed perfectly harmless, if not profitable. At the time, how likely was it for Hermione and Draco to get together? From our point of view, Ron and Hermione were still together! How were we supposed to know that the Hermione would move in with Draco!" Ginny cried, her face flustered. "Hermione certainly didn't tell this to us until recently!"

"Mm... But that's because she gets so caught up in life (and, well... Ron) that she takes a bit of time to tell us news..." Harry said thoughtfully. Honestly, he was quite curious to see how Hermione and Malfoy the Evil Bouncing Ferret were getting along. From what he had heard, Malfoy had become quite the gentleman. Sort of. He still made girls cry when he rejected them on the basis of their faces not being perfectly symmetrical, or their noses; he had an odd thing for rejecting girls on basis of their noses. "I'm just shocked that we haven't heard of bloody murder yet..." he said with a sigh.

"Oh, that! They were already in contact before- Hermione just didn't know that she was talking to Malfoy," explained Ginny. "Hermione told me a couple days ago via owl."

Harry stopped midstride and faced Ginny incredulously, "She talked to a random stranger and went to live with him with no idea that they were giant prats that made life a living Hell for her for about 5 years of her life?"

Ginny thought for a moment, "Harry, love, people change. I didn't believe it either, but I think that they might be able to get along civilly. From what I've heard, he's become standable." She paused, then added, "Although it's more likely that Blaise forced Malfoy to get Hermione to move in to the Manor."

Harry sighed again; they had not even met Malfoy yet, and he already had a headache.

* * *

><p>"Ready, Malfoy?" called Hermione, her voice magically carrying all the way to the hallway.<p>

"Where are you?" Draco asked distractedly.

"Middle wing, 13th sitting room on the left from the entrance." It had taken a while, but Hermione had eventually gained a pretty good sense of where things were in the Manor.

He walked in with a scowl gracing his face. Hermione smirked, this meeting was going to be really quite fun. Plastering an angelic smile on her face as she faced Malfoy, she flicked her wand to bring her voice back to normal.

"I put out some cookies and tea," she said innocently while twirling around to show him the platter.

"Brilliant," was his glum reply.

"Oh cheer up, it'll be fun!" She was really loving this; Harry would probably act like her father, and Ginny would probably make loads of obscene implications.  
>Watching someone squirm under such circumstances never appealed more to her. Especially since that someone was none other than Draco Malfoy.<p>

Draco sat down across from Hermione, his face grumpy. "Why wasn't I notified of this until today-no, precisely fifteen minutes ago?" he asked.

Hermione shrugged. "Well," she said matter-of-factly, "if I had told you earlier, you wouldn't have allowed it. It's been so long since I've seen them!"

"And Potter and Weasley know that this meeting was made a secret from me? They dare walk into my manor without my notice?" Malfoy asked, raising his eyebrow.

Hermione grinned mischievously. "Well, not really. You know they're coming! I did tell you! And besides, I never told them straight out that you didn't know, but then again, I did kind of imply it in my letter..."

"You _implied_ it. Right." Draco sighed and scowled some more.  
>"Now turn that frown upside down!" said Hermione. "It'll be fun!" And she meant it, though she doubted it would be for Malfoy.<p>

"Upside down...What am I, five?" Draco glanced at his watch. "They're late!" he said irritably.

"Give them some time! And why don't you move here?" Hermione motioned to the chair next to her.

Draco stared. "You want me to move next to you?"

Hermione shrugged. "Well, yeah. I mean, you'll need some protection- *cough* support."

If looks could kill, Hermione would be crippled. Not dead, just crippled. But Draco moved seats anyway. Just as he settled into the chair, there was a loud _crack!_ as Ginny and Harry apparated into the room.

"Ginny!" Hermione yelled, rising to embrace her friend in a hug.

Draco coughed uncomfortably as he stood up. "Hi," he said brusquely.

The awkwardness was mutual. "Hello," muttered Harry cooly, bringing his hand out.

Draco took the hand briefly and tried to indiscreetly wipe his hands on his robes.

Hermione saved the two from further awkwardness as she greeted Harry.

"Harry! You prat, you didn't answer or send any messaged!" she gave a mock glare.

Harry nodded apologetically. "Ron really hates the Misty Mermaids."

Hermione sniffed with disdain then brought her arms around her old friend.

Ginny smiled and joined in to make a giant group hug that just toppled from the awkward position. _(E/N: does this happen to anyone else other than me? I seem to topple group hugs D:)_

Laughter resounded between the three, and Draco Malfoy sat down, trying to plan out what to say and how to get himself alone with the soon-to-be Potter couple to discuss the bet. Maybe it would be better to tell Hermione of the ongoing bet. That way he wouldn't feel so guilty when they split. But then if he told her... Malfoy's thoughts were interrupted as Harry began to talk.

"So Malfoy. You had a secret correspondence," Harry's fake-friendly look was replaced by a cold glare.

"No, it was one of those pen pal things," he responded.

"That's why she didn't know who you were?"

"It was mystery X getting her attention, or me getting a killing curse in the mail."

"And that would be a loss?" put in Ginny with mild interest.

"Yes!" he cried indignantly. "Where would the world be without my charming wit and sparkling personality?"

"Many places. Somewhere happy and full of rainbows and butterflies," Hermione answered dryly.

"Not true-" Malfoy opened his mouth to defend himself.

"Yeah, we would be so much happier-" Ginny said.

"Oh, it would be such a brighter place without-" Harry said with a grin.

"Oi! I'm living with the git, don't you think I get first say? First off, don't worry about me; he's annoying but caring, a big flirt, but he doesn't mean half the things he says, aaaaand actually a pretty good housemate," Hermione cut in firmly. Malfoy looked at her with mild surprise. He would have to report this developement to Blaise.

Harry and Ginny exchanged an uncomfortable look. Was Hermione actually defending Malfoy?

Draco chuckled. "So..." he said, a tinge of triumph in his voice.

"Well, glad to see you doing well with Draco," Harry said coolly, flashing a quick smile.

Hermione nodded. "Here, try a cookie!" she said, recognizing the tension building in the air. "I baked them!"

Malfoy took one, studied it carefully, then took a small bite.

Hermione turned to him. "What are you doing?" she demanded in an offended tone. Sure, her cooking wasn't the best, but it wasn't terrible!

"Hmm...Pretty good!" Draco said after washing the cookie down with a sip of tea.

Hermione's face brightened considerably.

"Except for the fact that they're rock hard, I think they're perfect! I see this time you actually added the sugar instead of the salt," Draco continued.

Hermione flushed pink. "Draco!" she muttered through clenched teeth. "You are bloody well going to eat that cookie that I spent ages making."

"Tch, there's no way that even a dementor would eat that shit! Seriously, you should take cooking classes. We might actually have a chance to live then."

Hermione glared at him coldly. "Well you bloody ferret, you don't even deserve them anyway!" She whisked the plate away and held it up to Harry and Ginny. "Here! Taste them! Honestly, they're not horrid!"

Harry laughed weakly, "Er that's fine, I- we actually ate before coming, you see." His stomach gave a telltale rumble which he coughed to cover. Hermione seemed satisfied with his attempt at politeness. Bringing, the plate down and helping herself to one, she noticed Harry giving Ginny a sort of look, almost a signal.

"Hermione! Why don't you show me your room? And the grounds! I want to know everything about what has happened! We haven't been together in ages!" Ginny jumped up with a smile that covered an obviously grumpy scowl.

Hermione turned to Draco questioningly.

He began to disagree furiously, "No, n-"

Harry threw him an obvious look, and Draco understood, quickly changing his words.

"No, I should show you around, no? Ginny? Are you okay with my guest showing you around the manor? You can get quite lost..." he said.

Ginny ignored him. "Hermione, please? Pretty pleeeeeaaasseee?" She fluttered her eyelashes, and Hermione broke out into giggles.

"Who can refuse that face?" she said, standing up. "Let's go."

* * *

><p>Hermione led Ginny up the marble staircase to the third floor, where she intended to start the grand tour. Truthfully, Ginny wasn't too interested, but the house was worth looking around: huge, impressive, and magnificently decorated. And how many rooms were there? Probably a gazillion.<p>

"So, this is the sitting room..." Hermione was saying.

Ginny looked around. "The sitting room? Weren't we just in the sitting room?" she questioned.

"Ah, Malfoy Manor has exactly 34 sitting rooms, if I'm not mistaken. Not to mention 50 bedrooms...And individual bathrooms and miniature kitchens for all of them..." Hermione smiled at Ginny's puzzled face.

"34...50..." Ginny echoed. _Well, well,_ she thought to herself. Harry and herself had been worried that Ginny might not be able to buy enough time for the guys to talk over the bet. No worry there...84 sitting rooms and bedrooms to venture through. _Not to mention the huge garden, _thought Ginny as she drew the dark, musty curtains of a nearby window. Well, it figured. This manor might as well be a palace.

"And this way's the library, and next door is my room!" Hermione said as she led Ginny out of the door.

"Your room!" This time Ginny's enthusiasm was real. "Got to see that!"

* * *

><p>"Malfoy, have you told of the bet?" Harry hissed after the girls had left the room.<p>

"Are you daft? I value my life very much, thank you very much," Draco sneered.

"Yes, but... I don't want her to actually fall for you. We made the bet before we realized that she and Ron were... at odds," the response was a carefully worded warning, Draco realized.

"I see. Then... I have a solution," the smirk on Draco's face cold have frightened even Professor McGonagall.

"Does that plan include my death?" inquired Harry with mock politeness.

"Potter, you have no idea."

* * *

><p>Hermione was glad of company; it had been quite a while since she had been in contact with anyone other than Draco. It was really very refreshing.<p>

"So, any new plans for the wedding?" Hermione sat across from Ginny on her bed.

"Yeah, but I won't bother boring you half to death with all the details, hell, they bore me half to death! I would be perfectly happy with any kind of wedding as long as Harry was there!" She frowned. "As a groom, not a guest!"

Hermione laughed, "That would be awful! I'm really looking forward to the wedding, it'll be a break from all this stuff going on."

Ginny gave a small smile, "Bring Malfoy." Ginny said this on impulse; inside her head, she was already giving a lengthy string of curses at herself for bringing the very man who could lose her the bet. But Hermione just seemed so much happier around here than with that horrid brother of hers... Plus, she HAD to win the bet-and the only chance to prove that Hermione wouldn't fall for Draco was at the wedding.

"Er, Ginny... I would rather avoid deaths, thanks though." It was true, bringing Draco would cause too much pandemonium.

"No. You're bringing him. I need to win the b- I mean, I-I...need you to be happy?" Ginny ended weakly.

Hermione's eyes narrowed. "Ginny."

"Hermione?" Ginny said as lightly as possible, smiling sweetly.

"What is this? What are you hiding from me?" demanded Hermione.

Ginny stammered, "Wh-what? Hide? No, Hermione! Nothing!" Her face was already flushing; she wasn't really good at lying.

"For goodness sake! I'm not blind! I saw you and Harry pass those anxious looks!"

"No! It really wasn't..." Ginny's voice trailed to a stop as

"I'll simply have to ask Harry then," sniffed Hermione. She got off the bed and started off towards the 13th sitting room on the left from the enterance, Ginny hot on her heels.

"Hermione, it was nothing really, just a slip of the tounge-"

Hermione ignored Ginny and pushed open the doors to the sitting room.

"I know all about it," she announced dramatically.

Two paired of comically shocked eyes turned to her then to Ginny.

"Not me. Blame the Potters," Malfoy claimed his innocence as fast as possible.

"Er, we... um..." Harry stammered a bit. "It was accidental really, but... um... sorry?"

"So you _did_ almost spill a secret," Hermione turned to Ginny and raised an eyebrow.

"Care to share what I've been put into?"

Ginny looked apologetically at a very confused Harry and intrigued Draco. "Um, well you see...Hermione, it really isn't-"

Hermione raised an eyebrow. "Oh, really."

"Ginny," said Harry softly, "I think she should know." He turned his attention to Hermione. "You see, Hermione...We made a bet," he started.

"Yes? And what was this... bet... about?"

"Well, I suppose for once, Malfoy was innocent...kind of." she shot a glare at Draco. "Blaise against Harry and me. We bet that you can't fall for Malfoy. Blaise bet you could."

Hemione's demeanor was stony. "I see. So you bet on your 'extended sibling,' as you so sweetly put it some years ago, and her love life? Thank Merlin it had  
>nothing to do with Ron..."<p>

"Hermi-"

"Oh, and how is Draco involved in this bet?" She gazed at Draco.

Sighing, Draco answered, "Blaise tricked me into swearing on my honor and reputation that I had to try to charm you."

Ginny started to add quietly, "That blast-"

"And if you two are done interrogating Malfoy there, you may leave," Hermione interrupted with an icy glare.

"Hermio-" Ginny started, but was cut short when Hermione left the room with a swish of her dress.

Draco turned to Harry, "At least we didn't have to get you killed by using my plan!" With that cheerful parting, he too left the room.

* * *

><p>Three hours later, Draco found Hermione reading down by the small oriental pond in the garden maze. He sighed and sat down by the small stone bench. It had taken him a good portion of those three hours to search the house until he realized that she must be outside; then he had to get through the snow which was about ankle depth.<p>

Hermione moved her booted foot from the icy grass and poked Draco lightly with it. He huffed in indignation and moved out of poking range.

"Hey, what are you going to do in regards to the bet?" he asked cautiously.

"Well, right now I don't know," she replied seriously.

"Are... are you going to move out?" Unless she was mistaken, Hermione was almost certain that she heard some regret in Draco's tone. Then she remembered the nature of the bet and how he was supposed to charm her.

"If you don't mind, I'll be staying. And I have been thinking..."

"Oh, that's good then! Thinking about what?" he asked.

"Ginny and Harry had no right to bet on my life, therefore they are going to _pay_," she said simply. "Sure, I love them, but I think that this once, I would like to ensure that they know not to do shit like that."

Draco looked up at her in surprise; he had expected her to take their side, and then call off the bet. But here she was, sitting peacefully on a small stone bench in his (and sort of hers) manor on an icy day, by a frozen koi pond, reading some muggle murder mystery. _(E/N: to make me happy, let's say it's an Agatha Christie novel xD)_

"I see... So what do you want to do?" he was getting wary, somehow, he had a bad feeling about this.

She faced him and said carefully and deliberately, "We are going to pull a farce of falling in love. And there's nothing they can do about it. Oh and you're invited to the wedding..."

Draco smiled to himself; this girl most definitely not to be trifled with.

* * *

><p><em>Dear Myra, <em>  
><em>It's too bad that our offices are on opposite ends o the hall :( I miss you. I saw you last during lunch and it's been an awful day. I have no ideas how Hermione still managed to keep our team alive; right now our number of fans are so bloody low! In some ways, I'm really quite upset with Hermione for leaving the team; on the other hand, sometimes I just want to to the same and find a new team. Anyways, I heard that now she's living with Draco Malfoy, do you know him? Harry and Ginny have something going on, I just don't know what and it's annoying. Ginny was muttering something about bets and wedding dresses yesterday; I wonder if she gambled her wedding dress! Let's go out for dinner today, my treat. How do you feel about Russian tonight? I just suddenly had a craving for Russian food, but if you prefer something else, it's fine. Owl me!<em>  
><em>Love, Ron<em>

_Dear Ron, _  
><em>Don't worry, darling, we'll see each other more often when we have to more publicity. Well, Hermione is a very talented witch; it's only because of her that you survived, and don't deny that. Fans will grow and drop, just go with the times. Draco Malfoy, huh? He rejected me three years ago because my nose was apparently two degrees off center. Did you know that Ginny invited him to the wedding? Poor Ginny, she must be so stressed out right now. Dinner would be great, but Ginny and I already made plans, you know, I thought she would hate me because you and I are and item now and everyone expected you and Hermione (her best friend) to be together, but we actually get along pretty well. I was actually really shocked that you liked me rather than Hermione, poor girl, how did she react when you guys broke up?<em>  
><em>Love, Myra<em>

_Dear Myra,_  
><em>What are you talking about? Hermione and I were never going out! We thought we would after the war but we just have too different personality types. And Draco Malfoy rejected YOU? And he's invited to Ginny's and Harry's wedding? Bloody Hell, what is going on?<em>  
><em>Confused, Ron<em>

_Dear Ron, _  
><em>All I can say is, I feel really sad for Hermione. I can't believe you were so blind and daft! Go talk to her, I think you should clear up any bad feelings. Just... remember I love you, okay? And yes, there is a bet between the Potters and Blaise Zabini. Methinks you need to keep up with the times!<em>  
><em>Amused, Myra <em>

_**General A/N:**_ _Sorry this one took so long! Over a week :( We decided that naturally, Hermione would be pretty pissed at Ginny and Harry for messing with her life, so the twist. She's going to let Blaise win this one :) Not much fluff in this chapter, but next chapter is Valentines :3 (In regards to timeframe, this is around mid January~ She's gotten used to living with Malfoy, Winter Break is over, and work is running pretty smoothly). Alright, until next time! Review and you will be rewarded with imaginary sushi! xD Oh, btw~ E/N means Ekaterina's Note...^^_


	8. Chapter 8: Gryffindor Ties part 1

_**Blossom's Disclaimer: **__WE OWN IT ALL! (except for what Rowling owns)._

_**Mimiona's Positively Fascinating Disclaimer: **__This disclaimer will be to the theme of Phineas and Ferb. I will be Doofenshmirtz. _

_Me: Oh, hello, Perry the Platypus. Nice to see you here. I've been recently working on my Steal-characters-o-meter, so I can evilly steal the brilliant characters of the author of Harry Potter!_

_Him: *takes off his hat* *makes that weird little noise that platypuses do*_

_Me: Oh, random platypus! Do you want to join my EVIL corporation?_

_Him: *marches up to the machine and destroys it*_

_Me: Huh? Why did the random platypus destroy my evil machine?_

_Him: *puts on hat*_

_*AGENT P!* music plays in the background~_

_Me: CURSE YOU, PERRY THE PLATYPUS!_

_**Blossom's Note: **__Hi, readers! Thanks once again for reading, reviewing, favoriting, and story-alerting AWWIBB! We really appreciate it! Continue to support our writing! _

_**Ekaterina's Note**__: Ack. Today(well, actually a couple of weeks ago now) a senior told me I'd have to start worrying about AP exams over winter break. :( I am so disappointed... Ugh. Wednesday=HECTIC. English quiz, supporting my tennis team in playoffs, and Diwali...:l Saaaave meeeee... *cough cough review* So. Valentines, this should be fun! It's got a bit of fluff, but not enough to drown in :P It's more fun :D Ah, it's been soooo long since we updated! A very happy Halloween to y'all ;) I was Bellatrix :3 Ooooh today (one again, now about a week ago) I explained the difference between love and idolism/adoration in English using a Harry Potter analogy :3 The one kid who doesn't like HP was sooo lost ;P_

_**Mimiona's Note:**__ Hey, Phineas fans. What'ch'a doing?_

_Did you love my super fantabulous disclaimer? So did I. 3  
>So, how many of you guys like Candace?<em>

_The evil little girl ALWAYS trying to bust us geniuses?_

_We all hate her! Join the good side, the Ferb and Phineas side~_

_(And Vanessa, Isabella, and Jeremy- who is just amazing 3)_

Do this by REVIEWING, or FEEL THE WRATH OF THE CANDACE!

**ChApTeR 8: GrYfFiNdOr TiEs**

"Okay, Lilian, why don't you deal with the fan threatening to jump into the next quidditch match- that's on line one. Brynn, you cover the news scandal about Michael, the seeker of the team. I'll work on our new promotion organization going on next week; we're touring the rest of Russia before moving into other parts of Europe," Hermione organized the workload to her most trusted managers as they nodded. Everyone was relieved to not have to deal with the massive planning of the promotional event; it required far too much foresight.

"On to it! And here, I'll get Nick to organize the rest of the paper work so you can concentrate on the planning," Lilian smiled as she levitated the piles of papers off Hermione's desk.

"Thanks, love!" Hermione called after her jokingly.

"Ooooh speaking of love, what do you have planned for tomorrow?" asked Brynn curiously.

"Valentine's Day? Umm... nothing really, just daily life..." this would be her first Valentine's without any disappointments. Usually she sat and waited for Ron to take herout until midnight, when she finally gave up.

"Oh, perfect! Then why don't you join Lilian, me, Nick, Tara, and the team for dinner?" she was beaming as she said this. "It'll be fun!"

Hermione laughed, it certainly did sound a whole lot more fun than going out for coffee and hanging out in a bookshop by herself. "I'll be there," she promised.

"Brilli-" Brynn was cut off when a memo flew in and smacked Hermione full in the face.

"Bloody-" she scowled as she recognized Draco's handwriting. Their Valentine's dry run had slipped her mind entirely.

* * *

><p><em><strong>*Flashback*<strong>_

_Hermione knocked on Draco's bedroom after another long day of work. But it wasn't so terrible now; she had gotten used to the work pile, and it had diminished, too, after she had cleared up all the mishap the past PR head manager had caused. _

"_Who is it?" came the decidedly grumpy voice from inside._

"_What do you mean, who? Who else would knock on your door?" Hermione commented with a frown and opened the door for herself, walking in with a slightly arrogant air. _

_Draco looked up from the parchment he was writing on. "Why, how polite of you to just barge into my room!" he said with sarcasm. _

"_I know," said Hermione, sitting down on Draco's bed. "Okay, now, down to business!" _

_Draco's eyes were questioning. "Business? What kind of business?"_

_Hermione said manner-of-factly, "Oh you know, just your every day dose of proving your friends wrong and pulling a farce of being you're ex-worst enemy's lover..."_

"_O-h..." muttered Draco understandingly. _

_Hermione sighed and turned towards Malfoy. "I know, I know, I don't want to do that either," she said, "but I can't let Harry and Ginny get away with that." Her voice was determined. _

_Draco smirked, "Who said I was unwilling, love?" _

_Hermione glared at Draco. "Did I mention the part where we fake it? In public only?"_

_Draco's smirk grew bigger, "Ooooh so it's real when we're not in public?"_

_Ignoring his lewd remark, Hermione smacked him on the head absentmindedly while looking through some papers._

_Draco sighed and glanced over his scattered desk, "So, my dear revenge planner (it's funny, people are event planners and you plan revenge...), what do we do next?"_

_Hermione grinned. "Look, I've got this all planned out. The first execution of this plot is going to be at the upcoming Potter wedding. It's early spring."_

_Draco nodded. "Alright, so basically we go to the wedding, sit together and talk, all the normal things so the public can get a lovely shocker."_

_She shrugged, "Or anything else that may shock them..."_

"_Got you," said Draco. He was picking up on this faster than Hermione had expected. He waited expectantly for Hermione to leave the room. _

_Hermione hesitated._

"_Yes? I know I'm devilishly handome but-"_

"_We'll need to practice... Maybe after work? And we can have a dry run on Valentines day," she cut him off briskly. _

_Draco looked tired and sincere for once, "Look, you don't have to go so far for revenge. I don't know what you're playing at, but I thought that this would be a simple revenge and then we would part our merry ways."_

_Hermione sat down on the chair near his fireplace and sighed. Life was too complicated. First off, Draco was NOT who he was five years ago. That much was certain. Ron was also different, she couldn't rely on him right now. Harry and Ginny, they would always be there for her but not right now. Right now she was planning revenge on them and couldn't really go to them on advice about how to go about it. _

"_Hellllllllllo? Her- mi- one?" Draco's bored voice bought her back to earth. _

_She took a deep breath, "Alright. Here's how we are going to do this. From now on, in the wizarding public, we are an item. Other times, we're back to normal. When around Harry and Ginny... actually, even Ron, we can be a bit closer. We'll start small and get 'closer' over the next few months. This should take approximately... Well, more than 5 months for sure..."_

_Draco pinched the bridge of his nose, this was really far more planning than he had ever done. He was more of the make-it-up-as-we-go-along type of person, this was already stretching to about half a year. Blaise was really doomed to die a cruel and horrible death._

_However, on a more positive note, this also kept away the rather clingy suitors he had gotten in the past few months. If this plan worked, he wouldn't have to even see those either air headed or frighteningly shrewd gold diggers after him. _

"_Not much choice, is there?" he commented dryly. _

_Hermione gave him a relieved smile and left the room. _

_***End Flashback***_

* * *

><p>Shit. Malfoy would have to be her Valentine. And it was her idea...<p>

"Um. Brynn?" Hermione started tentatively.

"Yeah? Is that from Malfoy?" Brynn wrinkled her nose.

Hermione couldn't help but chuckle, "Yeah... well, you see.." She proceeded to explain the situation and nature of the bet as well as her revenge.

Brynn started laughing. Not an 'I-am-laughing-with-you-laugh,' but an evil sort of cackle.

"Oooooh Hermione, you, my dear, are one hot headed witch. A falsified romance," she snickered.

Scowling slightly, Hermione smacked Brynn with an edition of the Quibbler that happened to be on her desk.

"So are you helping or not?" she asked grumpily.

"Do you think I would pass?" sometimes Hermione wondered if Brynn had been in Slytherin.

Only after Brynn had left did Hermione remember the memo from Draco.

* * *

><p><em>Hermione:<em>

_What the hell are we doing for tomorrow? I've been getting the most annoying Valentine invites and I'd rather decline, thank you very much. Hurry the eff up and plan our day!_

_-Draco_

_PS. Can I give you a nickname? Like, Hermy, Herms, Mini, Miri, Rin, Rini, Mice, Moose..._

Hermione stared at the paper in disbelief, what was he thinking! Moose, Mice... At least the others were sort of related to her name.

* * *

><p><em>Draco:<em>

_No nicknames. It's Hermione or Granger, you're choice. Buuuut, if you want to help with revenge (I swear you're dead if you back out now), it's Hermione. And it's not my fault that air-headed dumbos are attracted to you. They must see their perfect idiotic other half in you. For Valentines, we're going to dinner with the Misty Mermaids' crew. That means my coworkers (most of who hate you) and the team, it'll be fun and less stressful than it being just the two of us._

_-HERMIONE._

_PS. Brynn knows about the bet and revenge. She's going to help, but I think she was in Slytherin so it might backfire :l _

Draco smirked as he read the note, so it was a group dinner, that just made it easier for him to tease her. And another Slytherin in on the bet? Even if she was Hermione's new friend (shockingly), there would be some sort of confusing fiasco for sure.

* * *

><p><em>Hermione:<em>

_Better than some party where I'll be on my best manners, charming the general public more than I usually do. So tomorrow evening? Let's take the whole day off tomorrow, I'm bored._

_YOUR BOSS, Draco._

Hermione glared at the paper. He had just used his power as her boss to make her skip a day of work, right now was when she was busiest and he should know that since he was the one who suggested the tour.

* * *

><p><em>My Idiotic Boss:<em>

_I HAVE A FREAKIN TOUR TO PLAN. SCREW YOU._

_Miss. Granger_

* * *

><p><em>My Dearest Darling, <em>

_But I'd rather screw you... Haha, I can already see you getting ready to plan my funeral. Fine, fine, if you would much rather stay in your stuffy little office with your prim and proper friends, planning a stupid tour for the team then go ahead. _

_Draco_

* * *

><p><em>Evil Little Git,<em>

_You're the one who suggested the tour and now I'm stuck with making sure they know all the rules; they don't do anything that will ruin our name or cause scandal, that we have just the right amount of media coverage but not enough to be a pest... UGH. I hate you. I really really hate you. _

_Hermione_

* * *

><p><em>Hermione, <em>

_Owl me later. I'm going out for a nice long lunch break. _

_Draco. _

* * *

><p><em>Malfoy!,<em>

_Get your lazy arse back here and finish your work!_

_Hermione_

* * *

><p><em>Hermione love, <em>

_I already finished. I also got a head start on the next events and such. Paperwork is also almost completely organized._

_Already ahead, Draco. _

* * *

><p><em>Draco,<em>

_I really want to punch you right now. How the hell do you finish all your work if you slack off more than half the time?_

_Upset, Hermione_

* * *

><p><em>Hermione,<em>

_It's this thing call skill, love. I happen to possess a lot of it. _

_Draco_

* * *

><p><em>Draco, <em>

_You're distracting me. I'll murder- *ahem* talk to you when I get home._

_Hermione. _

* * *

><p>The next day was mind wrecking, to say the least. Deciding that she would show her ever so sweet and arrogant boss, Hermione worked hard to finish the tour planning. And, thanks to her ever-so-useless boss, and the anger he gave her, she got it done in record time. And then the phone rang and left her feeling confused for the rest of the afternoon.<p>

"Hermione!" the voice on the phone startled her.

"Er, yes, this is she, how might I help you?" she replied politely.

"I got a phone! Myra's teaching me how to use it," came the proud reply.

"Ron" she asked in disbelief. "Is that you? You got a phone?"

"Yes!" he said quite proudly.

"I see..." Hermione said warily.

"So Myra and I were wondering if you had any Valentines plans?"

Hermione froze in the middle of shuffling papers on her desk. Why was he asking her this? Did he hear about the bet?

"Hermione?" Ron's voice from the phone shook her out of her thoughts.

"Oh... Yeah... um..." she felt torn. In one way she wanted to go with fresh hopes, but for some reason she really wanted to go for the Valentines dinner she had already planned. Maybe she had a commitment complex...

"Brilliant! So you're coming?" his happy voice came from the speaker.

"Oh? Wait, what? No! I never said anything of the sort!" she yelped in surprise. "Sorry Ronald, I have plans with some friends and my room mate."

"Oh," his voice was suddenly chilly, "so now I'm not as important? I see. It's fine, it thought we could fix things up and go back to being best friends, but if you really don't want to..."

Hermione felt irritation at the thick headed moron on the other side of the line. "Oh Ron, I would love to meet with you, but not on Valentines! I have special plans with a... date tonight, if I come with you I'll be lonely and like the third wheel! Take Myra somewhere nice and have a lovely evening."

She could practically hear Ron's jaw drop on the other side of the line. "You have a date? Wait, when did this happen? I thought... why doesn't anyone tell me these things anymore?"

"Ask Harry and Ginny, won't you? I'm sure they would love to tell you all about it."

"Oh..." suddenly he chuckled. "That's great, Hermione! I'm glad you're taking time out from work to get out and live a little. However, if your date is someone we disapprove of, I'm afraid I'll have to avada him!" How Ron managed to stay cheerful while saying this was a mystery to Hermione. And why was his tone laced with relief? He couldn't have known about her infatuation, could he? No, of course not! They continued talking a bit of little things like they used to. But somehow, it felt weird, like Ron could no longer hold her attention for more than a few minutes. Maybe that was because she had gotten used to Draco's weird conversation styles. Shaking her head to clear her thoughts, Hermione leaned back in her chair, it was late afternoon and she had to get ready for the dinner. Somehow, work seemed more appealing than the tedious work of dressing for a formal dinner.

Three hours, two straightening irons, twelve dresses, and thirty shoes later, Hermione had finally put together a decent outfit. Her hair was not straight, despite the straightener, but instead waving like limp spaghetti on her back. Maybe using sleekeazy would have been a whole lot better and convenient. Too bad she had decided to do things the muggle way. At least as a result she looked rather lovely.

Malfoy had dragged her into one of the west wing salon rooms of the Malfoy Manor after work and made sure that she was well taken care of. Her dress was provided for as well, which she was starting to find quite irritating seeing as Malfoy enjoyed choosing lovely, albeit quite... _revealing_...dresses for her. This one was a red silky dress that swished just above her knees when she turned and was belted by a thick silver chainlink. Tch, not as if she had a choice in what she wore, anyway, though.

"Hermione?" before she could answer, Malfoy came bursting with an evil smirk on his face.

"You ready? We have to leave in five minutes-" he was cut off by a resounding shriek.

Hermione moved almost behind her bed and used her dress as a curtain. Malfoy had _just_ happened to walk in when she was in the middle of changing. Of course. "You idiot! You just don't barge into people's rooms like that!" Although her tone was scolding, Malfoy could hardly hold back a laugh. He smirked at the brunette with a twinkle in his eye, and walked up to her. She glared at him and picked up her wand from on top of her bed. Undeterred by her wand, Draco continued forward until he was very close to her. And then her wand was at his neck, survivor reflexes, he guessed. It was quite impressive.

"Malfoy," Hermione sneered. "Get your bloody ass out of here."

He slowly walked backwards until he reached the door, but stopped before he got out. "You sure, love? I think I could be of great help here..."

He was met with one of the many rejected stiletto heels- who would have known that they hurt so much...

When Hermione stepped out of her room, wearing the dress he chose for her, he could hardly stop himself from giving her an appreciative look. Damn, he thought, did he have a way with clothes!

Instead of cowering under his obvious satisfaction, she just smirked at him in a way that told him that she had a nasty idea. Coughing slightly, he held out his hand but she had already breezed past him and was almost to the main center hall.

Draco cursed under his breath, and muttered, "Bloody tease.." as they made their way to the apparating station.

"I can't get any worse than you," she said with amusement and pinched his cheek before apparating them away.

The moment they touched ground, Hermione grabbed Malfoy's tie.

His eyes grew wide. "Hermione, what are you doi-"

"They're looking. Just follow," she hissed in his ear. He realized that from the others' point of view they would appear quite... close.

"Oh..." His surprise grew as she began undoing his tie. "Er... are you alright?" he asked cautiously.

"Your tie," was her only explanation. Draco frowned, trying to remember something, why did something to do with his tie seem familiar? He gasped in memory, "What did you do to my tie." It wasn't a question, more of a stiffened yell. His tie was now silver and red striped, and looked like something a GRYFFINDOR teasing Slytherin would wear!

"Mm... The Gryffindor red inspired me," she gave a cheeky smile and pranced off.

"Shit." He had failed to notice his tie until it was too late. Hermione's smugness positively radiated from across the room where she was waiting for him.

* * *

><p><em><strong>(AN: We cut Valentines into two chapter, look out for part two! :D )**_


	9. Chapter 9: Gryffindor Ties part 2

_**Ekaterina's Disclaimer: **I own this just as much as I own an authentic Victorian ball gown. In other words, not at all. _

_**Mimiona's just spectacular Disclaimer:** Imagine, for a second, a pomegranate. Imagine the nice, soft, juicy seeds, the amazing ripe fruit.  
>There, now that I've got you all hungry for pomegranates, here's a pomegranate!<em>

_And now that you're distracted with that pomegranate, I will go steal the characters._

_Hehe :D_

_**Blossom's Disclaimer:** *Dials 9-1-1* Hello? There's a Mimiona stealing characters from Rowling here. Please come quickly. _

_**Amber's Note**: People, I'm back!...Not like you knew I was missing though... After being dumped by my precious granddaughter just so she could go off and leave her own grandfather in aching pain, I have a broken heart. Well, anyways! For the 0.0001% of you that actually realized I was missing, I feel like I owe you an explanation. I won't be here for a while with my dry and sarcastic humor (heaven knows it's a horrible thing), and I'm also really sorry to the author authors of this story (you can whip me with a wet noodle later, guys) but I promise I'll be writing more as soon as second semester starts for me and I get my grades stabilized. I'm sorry! Btw, Ekaterina's lying. Her English is as fluent as...well, as fluent as English can be!_

_**Ekaterina's Note: **__Heya! I just want to apologize for the lack of updates, school has been rather trying :) Hmm. My English is perfectly awful so I'm tying to improve while writing here too... Oh, and I moved my personal one shots to a different account- _Grimm' _:) check it out? :3 OH, today was our first pep rally of the year... the marching band was awesome, but the dance team had the skimpiest outfits ever :l it was really weird. Haha, so thanks to everyone reading, favoriting, alerting, and REVIEWING. I love you all very much! Wow, this was a long time ago... Sorry for the slow updates! But it's winter break now... Hm nothing new really, check out Trans Siberian Orchestra, they have amazing music :D much love!_

_**Blossom's Note:** Hi everyone! Oh, goodness, there has been a LOOOONG break between our updates, but we've been kinda busy with schoolwork. Unfortunately, our days are filled with homework, study, extra-curricular, study... well, yeah. _

_But readers! Please review and comment and favorite and alert! Thanks to those who already have! 3_

**ChApTeR 9: GrYfFiNdOr TiEs PaRt 2**

There was an awkward silence around the table. Here they were, a group of friendly coworkers out for a Valentines dinner, ready to gossip about their boss all night- well, not all night, just enough to get it out of their systems- when the devil himself showed up.

"Hermione..." the team's seeker, Marilyn gave a false smile through clenched teeth. "You're here...with Mr. Malfoy..."

"Err..." Hermione racked her brains for a suitable response to the expectant faces looking up at her.

"Draco's dating Hermione!" Of course, Brynn simply had to use her hello

hellosing-song voice to say that. Hermoine couldn't help but give a small laugh which was immediately drowned by the sound of the peals of laughter produced by her friends.

"Ahhaha... Nice one, Brynn... Hehe, but no, seriously, why's he here. I mean, one night without our boss?" Jared wiped tears of mirth from his cheeks.

Draco frowned a bit, these people were not taking the situation seriously at all. They simply thought he was a party crasher right now.

"Er, no, I am dating Draco," announced Hermione with an exasperated look on her face. Draco took her arm and hooked it onto his as if to support her point.

Marilyn stared at them with wide eyes. Jared was gaping and Brynn was obviously snickering into her firewhiskey.

"Heeeeermiiiiione... Is there something you've been hiding from us?" Lilian raised an eyebrow and smirked. It was pretty obvious that Brynn had told her that Hermione and Draco were dating.

Nick winked at Hermione before saying in a fake-innocent voice, "No! It can't be!"

Brynn burst into peals of laughter that she tried (not-so-successfully) to turn into a coughing fit.

Draco sighed. Of course, he had been expecting a somewhat startled reaction, but this was... He looked around, finding that it was awkward of him to be standing around doing nothing. It was obvious that no one was going to invite their boss to sit with them, so he invited himself and his "girlfriend" to the table.

Marilyn looked curiously across the table at Hermione and Draco, who were sitting rather awkwardly next to each other. "When did this happen?"

Draco started, "None of your-"

Hermione elbowed him and interjected, "Oh, we started dating about two weeks ago, about when I first started working here." She cracked a forced smile.

Jared nodded, though he still seemed shocked. "Um, well, according to rumors, weren't you guys like sworn enemies or something ever since Hogwarts?"

"Well, benefits of knowing your enemies better..." Draco said. If he was going to do this, why not do it properly.

Jared still looked at them suspiciously.

Draco brought his arm around Hermione. "Honestly, I think we realized that we got along quite so well until we met again recently! I don't know how... Hermy... and I never realized our wonderful friendship." His voice was practically dripping with dry sarcasm.

"...Hermy?" the rest of the group chorused in amusement and confusion.  
>Hermione shook off his arm. "Well, you see, Grawp the giant was the first to call me that. He had a sort of maternal affection for me and I suppose Draco just has the sense of a giant."<p>

The occupants of the table stared at the two who were now glaring icily at each other in an attempt to insult the other while maintaining what might or might now seem to be affection.

"Right, right! Of course!" Brynn said, glaring at Hermione the message, "You two don't seem like you are dating!"

Catching the look, Hermione grabbed Draco's arm. "You know I'm kidding, right, dearie?" she asked in a sweet voice.

Draco gaped at Hermione. "What?"

Hermione jabbed Draco. "Oh, I knew you would know I was joking about the Grawp thing! You always knew what I really meant..." She forced a smile.

"Right, of course," Draco said gruffly.

Brynn laughed awkwardly and, attempting to lighten up the mood, started, "Ooh! Let's-"

"Hermione? Draco?" a dreamy voice cut Brynn off.

"Luna! Is that you?" Hermione stared at the petite blonde in front of her. Luna had not grown much in the past years, but she had maintained her usual quirkiness.

"Oh. The school nutcase!" Draco said cheerfully, earning him a smack from Hermione.

"Oh. The school bully..." Luna answered back dryly, giving Draco barely a glance.

"Touche..." he said, narrowing his eyes. Luna simply gave a blissful smile an rearranged her long hair around her black coat.

"I'm actually working at Gringotts now..." Luna announced.

"Ohhh! That's wonderful, Luna. Are you here with someone today?" Hermione beamed at the woman.

"Oh, yes, a colleague of mine and I are trying to decipher a few runes here. See, look at this..." From her handbag, Luna fished out an old piece of parchment and gently opened it to show the text.

Hermione peered at the words. "They aren't English, definitely."

"Well, yeah. We figured that out." Luna smiled brightly and added, "Actually, we even determined it was Latin." Draco raised an eyebrow.

Before Hermione could respond, another girl came rushing in. She was panting a bit and seemed to be a bit disorderly. Her blonde hair was dyed various colors and was falling out of her messy bun while papers were stacked precariously in her arms.

"Luna! Sorry sorry, I got caught up in the notes on page 8794 that I lost track of time!"

Luna whispered to Hermione, "She's a bit...out of it..."

Hermione stifled a laugh; it amused her that Luna was calling someone, "Out of it."

Luna smiled. "Everyone, this is Karen, she's my partner in deciphering the codes!"

Karen beamed at the group, she appeared to be younger than them, although probably about a couple years. "Nice to meet you all! I'm Karen!"

Pleasant introductions were made and the two were invited to join the table. They took two chairs next to each other but close to Hermione and Draco, who were looking over at the papers in interest.

"Latin...right..." Hermione said. "Well, I didn't study Latin very deeply, but I can recognize a couple things here and there. It seems like a bunch of...well...Latin."

Draco sighed. "And I thought you were the brightest witch in our generation. Here, let me read it."

Hermione stared at her "boyfriend." "You can read Latin? Impressive..." she said.

"Here...that means farm, that says twelve years..." He proceeded to go through the paper and point out words.

Meanwhile, Luna and Karen were talking excitedly. "Well, we've got a translator right here! We can finally know what this means!" Luna laughed.

"Where did you find this?" asked Draco, puzzled at the meaning. "It doesn't make any sense...at all."

"Well, it was in a rather rural area down by Ireland... I think it was what used to be a farm," Karen explained.

Luna jumped up and down enthusiastically. "Draco! Can you write down the romanization for the Latin on this parchment?" She took a scrap out from her bag and handed it to Draco.

Grumbling, Draco took it and started to write out the sounds on it. Every so often he bit his quill and glared at the paper.

Karen high-fived Luna. "LUNA! You've got awesome friends! They're so smart!"

Luna brought her eyes to the earnestly working Draco. "Right."

"But I'm just wondering why it was in a such a common- that is, old common? Language to translate. There are many people who could have translated that... unless it was meant to be read?" Hermione puzzled.

Draco's eyes widened. "Wait...oh Merlin..."

Luna began reading the parchment before anyone could stop her.

"Wait, Luna-" Hermione started, but Karen joined in the chant, and the two finished reading the romanized Latin.

Two seconds later, Hermione and Draco were sitting in the middle of a green, grassy field with the sun beating down on them and sheep bleating peacefully beside them. Draco turned around in horror, what once might have resembled his manor was now a giant Malfoy Barnyard. The rest of the quiditch team was slowly appearing around them and yelling in confusion. Hermione buried her head in her hands, she should have known that wherever Luna was, trouble was sure to follow.

_**E/N:** Hey, sorry for the late and short update, things have been hectic... Um, so we were thinking that this was getting kinda cliche, so it was time to spice stuff up xD Therefore, they have been cursed to remain on a farm in a rural part of Ireland until they figure out how to get out. It was that or becoming professional assassins and murdering corrupt politicians... ^^' So please continue to read and review! _


End file.
